Ready, Set, Go: Europe’s Race for Wind and Solar

The EU is facing an implementation gap where high renewable energy targets are not translating into on-the-ground deployment. By 2026, combined annual wind and solar additions are forecast to be only 38 GW, half of the 76 GW required for 1.5C alignment. Only four EU countries—Finland, Croatia, Lithuania, and Sweden—are on track for required wind capacity. A primary barrier is the permitting process; onshore wind permitting times in 18 analysed countries all exceeded the EU's two-year limit, with some taking up to 120 months. The report argues for enforcing the Renewable Energy Directive's permitting limits and streamlining administrative processes to enhance energy security and meet climate goals.

• To align with a 1.5C pathway, the EU must significantly increase its annual wind and solar capacity additions, rising from 34 GW in 2021 to 76 GW by 2026. However, forecasts suggest the EU will only add 38 GW by 2026, which is half of the required amount.
• Most EU member states are failing to meet the wind installation rates necessary for 1.5C alignment. Only four countries—Finland, Croatia, Lithuania, and Sweden—are currently on track to achieve the required annual wind capacity increases by 2030.
• Permitting processes for renewable energy projects frequently exceed the two-year limit established by the 2018 Renewable Energy Directive (RED). For onshore wind, all 18 analysed countries exceeded this limit, with permitting times ranging from 30 months in Romania to 120 months in Croatia.
• Solar permitting also faces significant delays, with the two-year limit exceeded in nine of 12 analysed countries. Permitting times for solar range from 12 months in Lithuania to 48 months in Croatia.
• While solar deployment has seen rapid expansion, future predictions remain below 1.5C compatible pathways. In Italy, for example, predicted installations between 2022 and 2026 are only one-third of the required yearly capacity.
• Germany's 'Easter Package' represents a significant shift in deployment ambition, planning for 10 GW/year of onshore wind from 2025 and 19 GW of offshore wind between 2026 and 2030, which would align its total wind capacity of 145 GW by 2030 with 1.5C benchmarks.

APA

Fox, H., Czyżak, P., & Brown, S. (2022). Ready, Set, Go: Europe’s Race for Wind and Solar. Ember. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/Report_-Ready-Set-Go_-Europes-Race-for-Wind-and-Solar-2.pdf

Chicago

Fox, Harriet, Pał Czyżak, and Sarah Brown. Ready, Set, Go: Europe’s Race for Wind and Solar. Ember, 2022. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/Report_-Ready-Set-Go_-Europes-Race-for-Wind-and-Solar-2.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Fox |first1=Harriet |last2=Czyżak |first2=Pał |last3=Brown |first3=Sarah |title=Ready, Set, Go: Europe’s Race for Wind and Solar |publisher=Ember |date=27 July 2022 |url=https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/Report_-Ready-Set-Go_-Europes-Race-for-Wind-and-Solar-2.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{fox2022ready, author = {Fox, Harriet and Czyżak, Pał and Brown, Sarah}, title = {{Ready, Set, Go: Europe’s Race for Wind and Solar}}, institution = {Ember}, year = {2022}, month = jul, url = {https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/Report_-Ready-Set-Go_-Europes-Race-for-Wind-and-Solar-2.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }