Overall, this brings the installed capacity to 93,957 MW, or 6.3% of the supply of electricity in the European Union. With 21.4% of new power capacity in 2011, the share of wind reached almost the same proportion as in 2010 (+ 9,648 MW).

“Despite the economic crisis in Europe, the wind industry has installed a solid foundation towards new capabilities,” said Justin Wilkes, director of regulatory affairs at the EWEA. “But to achieve the long-term goals of the EU, we still need strong growth in the coming years. It is important to send positive signals to investors throughout the European governments to maintain stable policies to support renewable energy and for the EU to continue to move towards the target of 30% renewable energy by 2030. ”

Development of onshore facilities in Germany and Sweden, as well as those carried off the UK (Offshore) offset the drop in facilities called mature markets such as France and Spain.

Overall, Germany is the EU country which has the largest installed wind capacity, followed by Spain, France, Italy and the UK.

EWEA says that Europe has installed more than 2011 renewable capacity than any other year. Renewable energy and represented 71.3% of new installations: 32,043 MW. Oil and nuclear energy have been contrary to a decrease last year, with more capacity divested.

In the European Union, the net installed capacity increased in 2011 from 35,468 MW to 895,878 MW, with a share of wind energy up 10.5%, while the share of renewable reached a rate of 31.1%.

See the full report EWEA 2011 (. PDF) >>> HERE

The European Directive on Renewable Energy plans to incorporate 10% renewable energy – primarily biofuels – transport by 2020.

To ensure that biofuels provide a real benefit to the environment, sustainability criteria have been established: the savings in greenhouse gas emissions must be at least 35% biofuels and these should not get up on land currently in forest or peat bogs. It is on this basis that the European Commission has just approved certification schemes for biofuels “sustainable” .

But according to FNE, these criteria are silent on a major “indirect change in land use ” (ICLU).Indeed, if biofuels are replacing food crops, there is nothing that they move on land currently in forest, leading to deforestation and CO2 emissions. A study by the Institute for European Environmental Policy (IEEP), the European biofuels would mobilize the world an area equivalent to twice that of Belgium, at the expense of forests and natural ecosystems, with disastrous consequences for climate change and food security.

The European Commission must decide precisely this July on consideration of the ICLU. “It just changed gear, postponing the decision until September and by another step to encourage biofuels, of which there is no evidence that they are green,” says the association of environmental protection.

“How can certify sustainable biofuels pathways, while the rules are not yet stabilized? Once again, it puts the cart before the horse and it rushes headlong without considering the consequences food, environmental and health impacts of agrofuels, “said Jean-Claude Bévillard, Vice-President of FNE in charge of agricultural issues.

According to a statement from the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA), last year there were installed nine offshore wind farms, 308 new turbines that produce electricity at a value of 2,600 million euros

In total, all wind power plants offshore, as well as the facilities are named in the sea, the EU added 1,136 turbines that generate from 11.5 terawatt hours (TWh).

In addition, these plants have sufficient capacity to supply electricity to about 2.9 million households, an amount equivalent to the cities of Berlin and Brussels together.

For 2011, the EWEA fully expected to be connected between 1,000 and 1,500 MW new renewables such throughout the EU.

Currently under construction are also ten new facilities with 3,000 MW in the future will double the current installed capacity of 45 plants in operation, which must be added a number of projects approved but not yet started and that could add other 19,000 MW.

The UK is the EU country that produces more offshore wind energy, with approximately 45% of the total, followed by Denmark (29%), Netherlands (8%) and Belgium (6%), according to the EWEA .

Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Ireland also have plants of this kind, although their generating capacity is much lower.

At present, Spain has no plant offshore, while, according to EWEA, we have had projects pending approval study and together reach 6,700 MW.

In addition, in 2010, 21 companies presented 29 new models of turbines in Europe and is expected in the next two years 33 more companies to launch 44 models.

According to Mr.Dimas, 30% commitment by EU will be better in the negotiations. There should be strong moral pressure on the developed countries and developing countries as well.

It should help to secure a deal, that would help to limit the rise of global temperature maximum to 2 degrees Celsius, added Dimas.

Analyses from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) show that a temperature increase of two degrees can be said to be a threshold value above which the effects of climate change would probably be more difficult to manage and would increase at a quicker pace.

Sweden’s Environment Minister Andreas Carlgren, whose country currently holds the EU presidency, said at a news conference on Monday, that the EU was “very close” to making a pledge to cut emissions by 30 percent, but was not yet ready to do so, The New York Tomes reports.

The EU has a last chance to change its commitment, when heads of state and government gather for their own year-end summit meeting during the second week of December, when the Copenhagen meeting will already be under way.