Wind

The ten most popular wind turbine models in 2024

Delivery of larger machines and Chinese international role reflect 'new normal' says analyst

China's Envision is the manufacturer of three of ten most popular turbines by delivery last year.
China's Envision is the manufacturer of three of ten most popular turbines by delivery last year.Photo: Envision Energy
Journalist

Goldwind, Vestas and Envision all feature in a new list of the most popular wind turbine models by number delivered last year, with GE Vernova also landing a spot in a ranking otherwise dominated by the Chinese.

Chinese turbine making giants, aided by their vast home market, produced seven of the most popular turbine models by delivery last year. Denmark’s Vestas was the manufacturer of two models and GE Vernova in the US one.

The Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) featured the list in its annual Supply Side Data report released last week.

Globally, 127GW of new wind capacity was installed last year, said GWEC – a little less than the total grid capacity of Spain. It was also a slight increase from 121GW of new capacity installed in 2023.

There were 23,098 wind turbines installed globally in 2024, said GWEC. Of turbines delivered, 4881 of those came from just ten models from leading suppliers.

  1. Goldwind GW191-5000H (883 units)
  2. Vestas V150-4.5 (836 units)
  3. Envision EN-200/6.25 (462 units)
  4. Mingyang MySE5.0-193 (441 units)
  5. Vestas V162-6.x EnVentus (404 units)
  6. Windey WD200-6250 (391 units)
  7. Envision EN-156/3.3 (384 units)
  8. Goldwind GW204-5600H (371 units)
  9. GE Vernova 2.8-127 (369 units)
  10. Envision EN-200/5.0 (340 units)

The Goldwind model top of the pile is a 5MW machine from the Chinese turbine-making giant’s GW191 range. It is a medium-speed permanent magnet turbine suited to low wind sites with a cut-in wind speed of 2.5 metres per second. It boasts a swept area of 28,650 metres squared.

The Vestas V150-4.5 is suited to low wind sites, with a cut-in wind speed of 3 meters per second. Although it has a similar power rating to the Goldwind model, it is considerably smaller, with a rotor diameter of 150 metres and a swept area of 17,700 metres squared.

The turbine is popular in the US, where it helped Vestas end GE Vernova’s years-long run of quarterly wins for turbine orders last September. Vestas, which has by far the widest global reach of any turbine supplier, has sold the machine in markets including South Africa, Spain and Brazil.
China’s Envision has three turbines on the list, the most of any manufacturer. Among those is its EN-156/3.3 model, which has proved a smash-hit in the massive Indian market and helped transform Envision into the country’s leading turbine supplier.
GE Vernova was the only other Western supplier to make the list with its best-selling 2.8-127 machine, one of its ‘workhorse’ turbines with a cut-in speed of 3 metres per second.

"The global wind industry has quietly crossed a threshold," said Tim Camp, director of turbine engineering at consultancy OWC. "Wind turbines above 5MW capacity are the new normal."

"In 2024, they made up over 60% of global installations, driven by the need to improve project economics through improved energy yield and reduced OPEX. What’s striking is that this shift is being powered by greater volumes of Chinese-manufactured turbines, which are now routinely considered for international projects such as wind farms in South Africa and the Middle East."

OWC expects there will be a "greater threat" to Western turbine makers if Chinese suppliers "can combine volume with demonstrated track records in export markets."

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Published 22 May 2025, 07:13Updated 22 May 2025, 08:08
ChinaGlobal Wind Energy CouncilEuropeAsia-PacificVestas