Wind energy is energy harnessed from the force of the wind and converted into electricity through dedicated facilities. It is a renewable energy source because it uses a natural resource that is continuously available and does not require coal, oil or gas to be burned in order to generate power. During operation, wind farms do not generate direct carbon dioxide emissions or the other air pollutants typically associated with fossil-fuel power plants. This is one of the reasons why wind power has become a central tool in the energy transition, alongside solar photovoltaic, hydropower, bioenergy and other low-emission solutions. Its deployment has now reached a global scale. According to IRENA, 113 GW of new wind capacity was installed worldwide in 2024 alone, while renewables accounted for 46% of total installed power capacity globally. This makes wind energy not only a response to the need to reduce emissions, but also an increasingly important component of energy security and supply diversification.

What wind energy is and how it is produced

Wind energy originates from the movement of air masses, mainly generated by differences in atmospheric temperature and pressure. These movements create wind, whose kinetic energy can be captured and converted first into mechanical energy and then into electricity. At the heart of a modern wind power plant is the wind generator, commonly known as a wind turbine. Its blades are connected to a rotor and begin to turn when struck by the wind. This motion is transferred to an electrical generator housed in the nacelle, the structure located at the top of the tower. The electricity generated is then converted to the appropriate voltage and carried through cables and substations to the power grid. In wind farms made up of several turbines, the electricity produced by each generator flows to a single connection point, from which it is fed into the system. The amount of electricity that can be generated depends on several factors. Alongside wind speed and consistency, the height of the tower, the rotor diameter, the turbine's technological features and the characteristics of the surrounding terrain all play a role. Before a plant is built, wind measurement and analysis campaigns are therefore carried out, often over several months or years, to determine whether the site offers suitable conditions. The latest turbines are also equipped with sensors and digital systems that automatically adjust the orientation of the nacelle and the pitch of the blades. This allows the turbine to adapt to wind direction and intensity, maximising output and protecting components when weather conditions become too severe.

Types of wind power plants: onshore and offshore

Wind power plants are mainly divided into onshore wind, built on land, and offshore wind, installed at sea. The operating principle is similar, but design features, turbine size, costs and grid connection methods differ.

Onshore wind

Onshore plants are generally built in hilly, mountainous or flat areas with good wind availability. They are the most widespread solution because they require less complex infrastructure, are easier to access for maintenance and, on average, have lower installation costs than offshore projects. An onshore wind farm may include just a few turbines or dozens of wind generators spread across a given area. Its design must take into account not only the quality of the wind resource, but also the distance from homes, landscape and biodiversity protection, the road infrastructure needed to transport components, and the possibility of connecting the plant to the power grid.

Offshore wind

Offshore wind, by contrast, harnesses winds blowing over the sea, which are generally stronger and more consistent and less affected by obstacles found on land. This makes it possible to use larger turbines and achieve high output levels. Plants can be installed on foundations fixed to the seabed or, where the water is deeper, on floating platforms anchored to the seabed. Floating wind technology is particularly relevant for countries where the seabed becomes deep close to shore, as is the case in several areas of the Mediterranean. It allows turbines to be installed farther from the coast and provides access to areas with favourable wind resources, without necessarily relying on structures fixed to the seabed. Although they offer greater generation potential, offshore plants require higher investment and dedicated infrastructure, including subsea cables, offshore substations, equipped ports and specialised vessels for installation and maintenance. According to International Energy Agency forecasts, new offshore installations worldwide could increase from 9.2 GW in 2024 to more than 37 GW per year by 2030, despite challenges related to costs, supply chains and the economic viability of some projects.

Feature	Onshore wind	Offshore wind
Location	Land (hills, mountains, plains)	Sea, on fixed foundations or floating platforms
Wind	Less consistent and affected by terrain obstacles	Stronger and more consistent, with fewer obstacles
Turbine size	Generally smaller	Generally larger
Installation costs	Lower	Higher (subsea cables, ports, specialised vessels)
Maintenance	Simpler and more accessible	More complex and requires marine vessels
Projected growth (IEA)	-	From 9.2 GW (2024) to more than 37 GW/year by 2030

The main environmental and economic benefits of wind energy

The first benefit of wind energy is the reduction of emissions. A turbine uses no fuel during operation and therefore produces no direct greenhouse gas emissions for each kilowatt-hour generated. There are, of course, impacts associated with component manufacturing, construction, transport and plant decommissioning, but lifecycle emissions are far lower than those of fossil-fuel sources. Wind power also helps diversify the energy mix and reduce exposure to fluctuations in international fuel prices. Wind is a local resource that does not have to be purchased or imported. Once a plant has been built, operating costs mainly relate to turbine management, monitoring and maintenance. This has driven a strong increase in the technology's economic competitiveness. IRENA reports that, in 2024, 91% of newly commissioned utility-scale renewable capacity generated electricity at a lower cost than the cheapest new fossil-fuel alternative. In the same year, onshore wind was, on average, the least-cost source of new electricity generation, with a global levelised cost of approximately USD 0.034 per kWh. Alongside its energy benefits, the construction of a wind farm can generate economic value for the local area. The design, construction, operation and maintenance phases involve businesses, technicians, logistics operators and specialised professionals. In offshore projects in particular, supply-chain development may involve ports, shipyards, component manufacturers, maritime services and research activities. Wind power generation also requires very limited amounts of water during operation, unlike some thermal power plants that use water for cooling. This is becoming increasingly important in areas exposed to drought and water stress.

Limitations and challenges of wind power development

The main limitation of wind power is the variability of its output. Wind does not always blow at the same intensity and cannot be scheduled according to electricity demand. Actual generation can therefore change over the course of the day and across seasons. This does not mean that wind power cannot contribute reliably to the energy system, but its growth must be accompanied by the development of grids, storage systems and forecasting tools. Increasingly accurate digital systems can estimate expected output, while batteries, pumped-storage plants, interconnections and other flexible resources help balance supply and demand in real time. In parallel, plant development must address land and environmental protection as well as acceptance by local communities. Turbines can alter the landscape and generate noise in nearby areas, while poorly planned siting can interfere with migration routes, habitats and existing economic activities. Reducing these impacts requires accurate environmental assessments, careful site selection and transparent engagement with local communities. Modern turbines can also be equipped with wildlife-monitoring technologies and systems that temporarily stop operation under specific risk conditions. Another challenge is the length of permitting procedures. The European Commission has identified simpler and more predictable permitting as one of the conditions needed to accelerate the sector's development, together with stronger European supply chains, manufacturing capacity and professional skills. Finally, there is the issue of managing components at the end of their useful life. Steel, copper, aluminium and other materials used in turbines can largely be recovered. Recycling blades, which are generally made from composite materials, is more complex, although the industry is developing new design solutions, recovery processes and more recyclable blades.

The future of wind energy in the energy transition

In the coming years, wind energy will continue to grow alongside other renewable sources. The International Energy Agency expects renewables to generate around 43% of the world's electricity by 2030, compared with 32% in 2024. Wind power is expected to account for approximately 30% of the projected increase in renewable electricity generation over the period. In Italy, this growth will need to take place within an energy system in which different sources are increasingly integrated. In 2024, renewables generated 118.4 TWh, equal to 51.83% of the electricity fed into the national system, up from 104.2 TWh the previous year. Data on Italy's national energy mix are published by GSE. The availability of larger volumes of renewable electricity also opens up new opportunities for sector integration. During periods of high output, wind energy can power storage systems, electrified industrial processes or electrolysers used to produce green hydrogen. The latter can be used in sectors that are more difficult to electrify directly or converted, together with biogenic CO₂, into synthetic fuels. This connection makes the development of renewable generation and the evolution of energy infrastructure complementary. Power grids need to become more flexible and interconnected, while gas infrastructure can progressively prepare to distribute low- or zero-emission molecules such as biomethane, hydrogen and synthetic methane. Within this framework, Italgas is working on the digital transformation of its networks and the development of renewable gases, with a particular focus on biomethane and the testing of the green hydrogen value chain. Greater renewable power generation, including from wind, can support hydrogen production through electrolysis and create new links between the electricity and gas systems. Digitalisation makes networks better able to monitor quality, pressure and flows in real time. DANA, the system developed by Italgas, enables remote command and control of facilities and also supports the distribution management of renewable gases such as hydrogen and biomethane. The future of wind energy will therefore depend not only on the number and capacity of installed turbines. It will depend on the ability to integrate technologies, networks, storage and digital tools, building a more diversified and resilient energy system that can use all available resources efficiently. From this perspective, renewable electrons and molecules are not competing alternatives, but complementary components of the transition towards a low-carbon economy.