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What is wind energy?

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Harnessing the power of wind

In the news

•

The ‘age of electricity.’ Power-hungry data centers, electric cars, and new warehouses are propelling demand for electricity, which the New York Times reports is expected to reach new heights. According to the International Energy Agency’s current estimate, global electricity demand is expected to be 6% higher in 2035 than the agency’s 2023 forecast. New low-emissions energy sources, including wind and solar, will probably be enough to meet the increased demand. Nevertheless, countries are not building enough low-carbon sources of electricity to reach their net-zero emissions goals by 2050. [NYT]

•

Battling misinformation. US wind industry leaders say that more experts should dispute false information about wind energy in public forums, the Associated Press reports. Since 2023, opponents of offshore wind projects have been claiming that the installations pose a danger to wildlife, even as multiple government agencies report no evidence to support that notion. The industry still faces significant challenges as it strives to meet the target of generating at least one-fifth of the nation’s electricity from offshore wind by 2035. [AP]

McKinsey estimates that two critical metals used to make the high-power magnets in wind turbine generators will face a shortage of up to 60% in 2030.

On McKinsey.com

•

The growth of wind power. As climate change compels the world to decarbonize, wind energy—a renewable source of electrical or mechanical power—could help transform the energy sector. Renewable-energy generation is growing globally, McKinsey senior partner Humayun Tai and coauthors find, and wind power deployments are expected to grow by about 20% each year until 2050. Still, wind generation pipelines are generally delivering below what’s needed to achieve the 2015 Paris Agreement’s decarbonization targets for 2030.

•

Floating wind farms. Older offshore wind turbines had to be installed on foundations that were grounded on the seafloor in waters up to 50 meters deep. Now, newer turbines with floating foundations can potentially be installed in much deeper waters, an improvement that increases the viable sea area for offshore wind by a factor of five. Read our McKinsey Explainer “What is wind energy?” to understand the challenges and opportunities of the offshore-wind business, and visit the “McKinsey at COP29” page to explore our offerings at this year’s UN climate change conference .

Learn more about wind energy

—Edited by Belinda Yu, editor, Atlanta

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by "Only McKinsey Perspectives" <publishing@email.mckinsey.com> - 01:19 - 14 Nov 2024

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What is wind energy?

Harnessing the power of wind

In the news

McKinsey estimates that two critical metals used to make the high-power magnets in wind turbine generators will face a shortage of up to 60% in 2030.

On McKinsey.com