LONDON (Reuters) - Wind power provided 20% of the electricity consumed in Europe last year, but the capacity built during the year was less than half of what is needed to meet the European Union's 2030 energy and climate targets, industry group WindEurope said on Friday.

WHY IT'S IMPORTANT

Wind has been a growing part of Europe's electricity production for more than 20 years, and the European Union wants it to grow much more to meet targets to combat climate change and also as it reduces reliance on fossil fuels.

BY THE NUMBERS

Europe built 15 gigawatts (GW) of new wind energy last year, including 13 GW of offshore wind and around 2 GW of onshore wind, according to preliminary 2024 data from WindEurope.

European Union countries accounted for 13 GW of this, but to reach its 2030 climate targets the 27-nation bloc should be building 30 GW a year of new wind farms.

The EU wants wind power to account for 34% of electricity consumed by 2030 and more than 50% by 2050.

CONTEXT

The global offshore wind industry in particular has faced a challenging few years due to infrastructure, grid connection and logistics issues, permitting delays and higher component costs.

Offshore wind investments in Europe have fallen and it remains challenging for companies to take final investment decisions, WindEurope said.

KEY QUOTES

"Europe is not building enough new wind farms. For 3 main reasons: a) most governments are not applying the good EU permitting rules; b) new grid connections are delayed; c) Europe is not electrifying its economy quickly enough," said WindEurope chief executive Giles Dickson.