Global wind capacity grew by 29 % in 2008 with the United States surpassing Germany to become the world’s leading wind power generator, Worldwatch Institute said. The Washington-based research organization said last Thursday that global wind capacity rose by over 27,000 megawatts (MW), or enough to power around 27MM homes, to some 120,798 MW last year. Wind now provides 1.5 % of the world’s energy demand, up from 0.1 percent in 1997. US wind capacity increased by 50 % or 5,170 MW, or 21% of world capacity. In Europe, wind represented the leading source of new power capacity, with 8,877 MW installed in 2008. This was 28% more than new natural gas capacity and over 10 times more than new coal, Worldwatch said. Europe now generates 65,946 MW of wind power, or 55% of global capacity, Germany still leads the region, generating 23,903 MW of wind power, but it saw new installations drop slightly in 2008.
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