Denmark: the country that transformed the wind into energy

It all started with a crisis. In 1973, when the first oil shock hit the west, Denmark found itself particularly vulnerable. Its energy system depended almost entirely on imported oil, and the leap in prices brought the country face-to-face with the need to rethink its future, quickly.

It was in these years that the first modern wind turbines began to appear around the Danish countryside. These were still relatively small-scale plants, often the work of local communities, cooperatives and small investors, but the inspiration behind their turning blades already marked a turning point in national energy history: the transformation of the wind that blew almost ceaselessly across the plains and along thousands of kilometres of coastline into a resource.

Over the course of the coming decades, the experiment evolved into industrial policy. Denmark invested in research, building technological skills, supporting the spread of these plants and creating a full-blown national supply chain around wind power.

The result? A radical change. According to the International Energy Agency, wind produced 54% of Danish electricity going back to 2022, the highest proportion of any of the Agency’s member nations. With bioenergy and solar power also considered, renewable sources covered 81% of the electricity mix. Even today, wind is the main source of electricity production in Denmark, representing over 58% of total generation. This is followed by solar power at almost 11%, while biofuels and energy from waste combined make up around 23%. According to more IEA data, Danish wind production quintupled between 2000 and 2024. These numbers paint a clear picture, considering too that Denmark was one of the main countries leading the way in decarbonisation. In 2022, the government announced its goal of reaching net-zero emissions by 2045, in addition to its commitment to putting an end to the production of fossil fuels by 2050.

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When blades meet waves. At a certain point, solid ground was no longer enough. For wind power to continue growing, Denmark had to look to the sea. In 1991, Vindeby, considered to be the world’s first commercial offshore wind farm, came into operation off the coast of the island of Lolland. Eleven turbines carved out a pathway that was destined to change the European energy system. Since then, things have progressed to an entirely different scale. Turbines have grown massive, power substations have moved away from the coast, and the North and Baltic Seas have become some of the world’s most important sites for the production of wind energy.

For Denmark, the shift from onshore to offshore was more than a technological evolution: it marked the transformation of its geography into a component of energy infrastructure. The wind that blows across the North seas can produce enormous quantities of electricity, potentially exceeding the country’s consumption needs. This is where the transition enters its most complex phase, because producing energy is not enough: it must be accumulated, transported and distributed.

Energy islands. The evocatively named “energy islands” mark the new frontier of the Danish strategy. The idea is to move beyond the traditional model in which every offshore wind farm is directly connected to a single nation. Energy islands have been conceived of as immense hubs capable of accumulating the electricity produced by different offshore plants and conveying it towards multiple markets through submarine connections: a sort of railway interchange dedicated to the transport of electricity.

The concept is a good encapsulation of how the energy transition is changing the very nature of electricity infrastructure. While the traditional system saw large power substations producing energy relatively close to where it would be consumed, the new model distributes generation across far vaster territories: in the deserts, throughout wind-tossed countryside and, more and more often, dozens or even hundreds of kilometres from the coasts.

This means that the grid has to stretch to where the new energy resources are located, while simultaneously managing to transfer enormous quantities of electricity to cities and industrial districts. Energy islands are, therefore, one possible solution to this new geography, and an indication of the broader direction of travel: the future of European electricity will inevitably be more interconnected.

A grid without borders. When strong winds blow, Danish turbines can produce more electricity than its citizens, companies and businesses actually need at that moment. When the wind dies down, on the other hand, the system must be able to quickly fall back on other sources. This is where the grid comes into play. Denmark is part of an electricity system with strong interconnections with neighbouring countries. These connections allow electricity to cross borders, so that energy can be exported during peak production times and imported when necessary.

This turns the grid into a giant balancing infrastructure, a system that can compensate for the natural variability of renewable sources across a much wider geographic area.

In other words, Denmark is an early example of what can be expected across much of Europe. The growth of renewables will require new lines, submarine cables, storage systems, digital technologies and international interconnections: a grid capable of transporting energy and managing increasingly complex and variable flows.