Europe installs 8.8 GW of wind in H1 2026, up 30% year on year

Europe installed 8.8 GW of wind capacity in the first half of 2026, a 30% year-on-year increase, according to WindEurope. The figure puts the continent on a trajectory for a full-year record, provided second-half execution matches the pipeline. WindEurope notes that structural problems persist despite the strong headline number: permitting bottlenecks, grid connection queues, and the pace of electrification policy remain the decisive variables for 2026 and beyond.

On the construction side, there were two project milestones. Ørsted's 920 MW Changhua offshore wind project off Taiwan entered its final commissioning phase, per Renews.biz. Separately, Jan De Nul's installation vessel Les Alizés set the first Sif-supplied monopile at the OranjeWind offshore site. Neither milestone shifts European capacity numbers directly, but both illustrate that the offshore supply chain is active heading into H2.

Elsewhere, the regulator confirmed it will launch the Hornsea 3 offshore transmission owner tender in October, and Hungary opened an onshore wind tender covering nine network nodes across six districts. Per RenewableUK analysis cited by Renews.biz, hitting the UK's 29 GW onshore wind target by 2030 could unlock huge savings, adding a system-cost dimension to the deployment debate.