Abstract
The global wind industry entered 2026 with confidence, as a foundational pillar of the emerging Electrotech era. In 2025, the sector delivered another record year, installing 165 GW of new capacity worldwide. Wind power is increasingly a pivotal technology of the modern electricity system, the only clean energy source with proven scale, reliability and geographic versatility to anchor grids, meeting surging industrial demand and delivering energy security simultaneously. It is already doing so across economies where power demand is rising, digitalisation is accelerating and industrial competitiveness demands clean, reliable and secure energy.
This report is published at a moment of profound geopolitical fracture and sustained volatility in global energy systems. The escalating conflict in the Middle East, including the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, have once again exposed the fragility of fossil fuel dependent economies – triggering supply disruptions, price shocks and cascading economic consequences across regions. This is not an anomaly but a recurring feature of the global energy system, seen from the oil crises of the 1970s to today: reliance on concentrated, trade-dependent fossil fuels is a structural vulnerability.
The story of wind in 2025 is about more than record installations: It reflects the continued maturation of a technology that delivers long-term value across the real economy, strengthening energy security, enhancing system reliability and underpinning industrial growth in both established and emerging markets. This progress has taken place against a challenging backdrop of volatile fossil fuel prices, commodity pressures and rapidly rising electricity demand driven by digital infrastructure and new manufacturing.
This year’s Global Wind Report explores how wind is gaining ground globally, outlines the conditions required to sustain momentum and – in the Markets to Watch section – highlights the success stories of markets where implementation and delivery are beginning to match ambition.