PVTIME – Official industry data confirms that wind energy expanded solidly across Europe throughout the first half of 2026. The region installed 8.8GW of new gross wind capacity, 7.1GW of which was accounted for by the EU 27 bloc. Onshore infrastructure accounted for 74% of new deployments, equating to 6.5GW, while newly commissioned offshore wind capacity reached 2.3GW. Germany led national growth, installing 3.4GW of new capacity, followed by the UK with 789MW and Spain with 612MW.
Europe’s total operational wind capacity now exceeds 311GW, comprising 270.5GW of onshore assets and 40.9GW of offshore facilities. The EU 27 holds nearly 252GW of this total, consisting of 228.4GW of onshore wind capacity and 23.2GW of offshore capacity.
Investment in the European wind sector reached €9 billion in the first half of 2026, financing 5.2GW of upcoming wind farm capacity. This comprises 4.5GW of onshore installations and 0.6GW of offshore assets. Firm turbine order volumes totalled 10.6GW, of which 7.8GW was allocated to onshore projects and 2.8GW to offshore deployment. This represents a 12% reduction from the 12GW recorded in the first half of 2025.
