WindEurope Annual Event 2025

The WindEurope Annual 2025 Event, which took place this year in Copenhagen between Tuesday 8th and Thursday 10th April, was an opportunity for expression and debate for leading figures from politics, economics and industry related to energy and climate action. Some 15,000 professionals from the sector attended the event, which featured some fifty talks given by more than 250 wind energy experts, as well as the participation of almost 500 exhibitors representing the extensive wind energy value chain. The slogan of this year's event was “Scale Up, Electrify and Deliver”, with the aim of placing wind energy at the center of Europe's competitiveness.

After a rise in prices and serious inflation in recent months, WindEurope emerged this year as a rallying point to make wind power the spearhead of the energy transition. With the 2030 targets drawing ever closer, it is necessary to make big decisions and push ourselves to achieve those goals. To do this, we need to unite the sector and guide it towards becoming a successful industry.

The flagship event of the association that promotes the use of wind energy in Europe recalls that the European Union (EU) built 15 GW of new wind power capacity in 2024. This figure is a concern for the old continent, which would have to build 30 GW of new wind power capacity annually to reach the estimated 2030 number. "Europe is not building enough wind farms. Governments must act urgently to address three key problems: permitting hold-ups, grid connection bottlenecks and the slow pace of the economy’s electrification," explained Giles Dickson, CEO of WindEurope. This is why the next few years are crucial for planning the promotion of this renewable resource: both to meet the goal of becoming energy self-sufficient and to meet the requirements of the European Green Pact for decarbonization by 2050.

At Iberdrola we were pioneers two decades ago in onshore wind power, a technology with which we will have installed 20.7 GW by the end of 2024. Now, offshore wind has established itself as one of our major growth vectors. At the end of 2024, we had 2,373 MW offshore in operation, a figure that will reach 6.5 GW in 2030. These projects will be joined by growth opportunities and options in key countries from 2027.

Iberdrola's participation in WindEurope Annual Event 2025

In this edition, Iberdrola participed in the main conference programme with two speakers:

In addition, Iberdrola sponsored the “Powering the Future” conference stage, which hosted three days - from April 8 to 10 - of interactive debates with experts on the importance of facilitating and promoting electrification. Topics such as flexibility, innovation, electrification driven by renewable energies, coordinated grid planning and digitization were addressed as key factors for a competitive and secure future system with zero net emissions. 

On April 8, the panels focused on electrification driven by renewable energies to achieve competitiveness in different sectors such as industry; the alignment of education, industry and politics as the basis for a green transition; flexibility and the development of networks.

The session on April 9 addressed the decarbonization of heavy transport, the electrification of buildings, the importance of innovation, the development of energy agreements such as PPAs or DCs and renewable electrification through hydrogen.

Finally, the panels on April 10 addressed the challenge of cybersecurity in the sector and the evolution towards green energy.

The Iberdrola speakers who took part were:

• “Opening”: Juan Rivier Abbad, Head of Global Renewables Regulation 
• “Accelerating industrial electrification”: Fernando Mateo Barrientos, Head of Industrial Heat Decarbonization 
• “The contribution of storage in a flexible environment”: Rafael Mallo Tirado, Senior Storage Engineer 
• “Decarbonization of heavy transport: current and future milestones”: Ana Fernández Galán-Miera, Product Manager - eBus & eTruck 
• “Electrification in buildings and condominiums”: Vanessa Castro, Head of energy, efficiency and edification 
• “Renewable electrification through hydrogen”: María Peñarrubia, Green H2 and derivatives Market Intelligence Manager 
• “An industrial and commercial journey: from grey to smart green energy”: José Déciga, Smart Solar Global Product Manager 
• "PPAs and DCs: strategies to procure clean electricity for data centres": Patricia Blanco Fernández, Head of KAMs for Corporate Customers.

WindEurope 2025’s Main Take-aways

During the event organised by WindEurope, leaders of the renewable energy sector analysed Europe's crucial role in transforming the power system. In a context marked by climate urgency and geopolitical tensions, stress was laid on the fact that the continent has in its hands the ability to continue leading technological development in renewable energies, consolidating itself as a global benchmark in the economy’s electrification.

One of the central themes was the need to accelerate project implementation. The rapid delivery of renewable infrastructures and modernising electricity grids are keys to guaranteeing a secure, sustainable and competitive power supply. This agility must be accompanied by strategic planning that anticipates future demand and allows for efficient integration of technologies such as offshore wind, energy storage and the digitalisation of the electricity system.

The event underlined that the success of European electrification will depend on an approach coordinated between governments, businesses and the community. Reforming market mechanisms to reflect the real value of system flexibility and resilience, aligning public policies with climate objectives and fostering cross-border collaboration will be essential steps in moving towards a clean and fair energy model.

What is WindEurope?

WindEurope is the leading wind energy association in Europe. With more than 500 members, its main objective is to promote this type of energy and to create a working group in which the entire sector is represented, and which gather at the annual event – the WindEurope Annual Event.

Importance of wind energy in Spain

Wind energy is the second largest source of electricity generation in Spain. In 2024, wind energy was generating 23%, a historical record, leading renewable energies. A total of 50% of the power used in Spain comes from clean energy sources. In the world, Spain ranks fifth in terms of installed wind energy capacity – behind only China, the United States, Germany and India – making it the second largest European country.

Spain has taken advantage of its strategic location to increase the amount of renewable energy in its energy mix, while at the same time committing to renewables as a way to avoid rural depopulation. In addition, the country has also increased its production of clean energy through the use of solar plants. 

At Iberdrola we are also developing numerous hybrid projects, which combine both technologies to make greater use of renewable sources, with the aim of increasing production and reducing dependence on fossil fuels.