Wind Energy Economics

Objectives

Wind power serves as a key source of low cost and clean energy in power markets around the world. As wind energy's share of total electric generating capacity grows, new solutions for wind energy technologies, market design, and supply chains are arising – all of which require a nuanced assessment of their cost and value proposition. The work within the IEA Wind TCP Task 53 aims to inform the analysis, research, and regulatory communities of the current and future cost and value of wind energy for land-based and offshore wind technologies.

The Task aims to draw on its research participants to conduct comparative analyses that span multiple power markets and wind energy technologies with regular data reporting on the evolving economics of wind energy. For instance, the Task elicits detailed data to characterise wind energy's capital (e.g., rotor, nacelle, tower, transport, foundation) and O&M expenditures and to explain cost differences between markets and wind energy technologies. We compare wind energy's cost with the value the technology provides to the power system and its remuneration from public procurement and auctions.

By providing high-quality data that supports analyses related to cost and value of wind energy, the Task enhances the broader energy community's efforts to plan for the future. Organisations such as IEA and the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) have used Task 53 wind project cost and performance statistics, and participants of the Task regularly use these data for internal benchmarking and external purposes.

Participation

The Task has eleven IEA Wind TCP Members, representing 19 distinct organisations with participation from 22 individuals (Table 1). In its work programme, the Task considers the full array of land-based and offshore technologies with a focus on utility-scale applications. During 2025 and early 2026, the Task held monthly virtual meetings and two in-person meetings in Tokyo, Japan and Copenhagen, Denmark. Government entities, industry stakeholders and external researchers regularly collaborate on work products and participate in the Task's in-person meetings. The Task has also held a joint workshop with IEA Wind Task 63 and explores joint research interests on a continuing basis.

Progress, Results, and Impact in 2025

Task 53 has entered its final year of Phase 1 research activities. The Task was extended for another four-year period (Phase 2) starting in January 2026. Collaboration among the group has been robust and covered a variety of areas. Highlights of the Work Packages (WPs) include:

• WP1: A core team led by NLR with support from LBNL finalised a report on wind energy experts' perspectives of how wind plant siting, layout, and operations might differ by 2040 [1].
• WP3: DTU Denmark finalised a draft manuscript on the impacts of electricity price uncertainty under different procurement instrument design (e.g., contracts-for-difference). The analysis included consideration of negative wholesale electricity prices and project liquidity constraints (Figure 1) [2].
• WP5: The project team from EA Energy Analyses finalised a report exploring value implications and trade-offs of transmission and hydrogen options for offshore wind energy coupling [3].
• WP6: The European Commission Joint Research Centre published a report on the opportunities and challenges of wind energy's global supply chain data based on a data collection of Tier 1 through Tier 5 wind energy turbine and component suppliers [4].

In addition to monthly web meetings, the Task held in-person meetings in Japan and Denmark. In Japan, an industry day organised by the University of Tokyo featured dialogue between Task participants and Japanese wind experts from industry and government on the Japanese offshore wind sector. The Task meetings in Copenhagen, Denmark included a dissemination event with participation by offshore wind developers, regulators, and external researchers. This dissemination event featured research from the Task on the design of contracts-for-difference for large-scale wind energy deployment.

Next Steps

The Task was approved for another four-year extension during the ExCo 99 meeting in November 2025. Its work programme going forward focuses on the economic evaluation of wind energy technology choices and operations under high renewables futures. During the period of performance from 2026–2029, the Task aims to characterise: (1) the cost and value proposition of wind energy technologies in a future power system and siting regimes (WP1 and WP2); (2) the impact of market designs and wind plant operations on technological choices (WP4); and (3) impacts from revenue and commodity price uncertainty on wind energy's economic offering (WP3). The Task will also continue its tracking of wind energy costs with a shifted focus on how cost and value change with technological choices and merchant exposure (WP5).

Major upcoming deliverables in 2026 include a journal article on the economic impacts of inter-farm wake effects among offshore wind plants and potential mitigation strategies.

References

1. Houghteling, C., P. Beiter, C. Brush, A. Elkins, R. Wiser, J. Rand, J. Seel. Forthcoming. "How will the wind blow in 2050? A global expert elicitation survey on the future of land-based wind energy siting and technology development." Draft manuscript.
2. Ioannou, A., M. Graefe, P. Beiter, L. Kitzing. Forthcoming. "Comparing Contract-for-Difference designs under electricity-market uncertainty." Draft manuscript.
3. Tapoglou, E., Georgakaki, A., Prior Arce, A. and Mc Govern, L. 2025. "Knowledge gaps in the wind energy technology supply chain." Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg. https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2760/5039330, JRC142187.
4. ea Energy Analyses. Forthcoming. "Offshore wind and its relationship to transmission and hydrogen infrastructure in Northern Europe." Draft manuscript.