Latvia's wind energy still lags far behind its Baltic neighbours
While Latvia's total installed power capacity now exceeds 2,000 megawatts and solar energy is expanding rapidly, wind power development has stagnated for decades and trails far behind Lithuania and Estonia.
Latvia's total installed electricity generation capacity from all sources now stands slightly above 2,000 megawatts, but more than 30 years after independence was restored, the energy sector has not achieved the rapid growth the frequently cited gigawatt figures might suggest. This was explained by Jānis Irbe, chairman of the council of the Latvian Renewable Energy Federation, in an interview on the TV24 programme "National Interest Club."
Hydropower still dominates
By installed capacity, the largest share of renewable energy still comes from hydropower — roughly 1,600 megawatts in total, driven largely by the three hydroelectric plants on the Daugava River. Irbe noted that this achievement cannot be credited to independent Latvia, as the capacity was inherited from the Soviet era.
Solar overtakes wind
In recent years, solar energy has grown the fastest, with an especially sharp rise following the energy crisis. A large number of solar power plants were commissioned last year and this year. Taking into account the private sector, microgeneration, corporate self-consumption installations and large solar parks, installed solar capacity has this year already surpassed wind energy capacity.
Wind power far behind neighbouring countries
According to Irbe, wind energy development in Latvia remains stagnant and continues to progress with great difficulty. To date, Latvia has installed approximately 138 megawatts of wind capacity — significantly less than its neighbours. In Lithuania, the figure already exceeds 2,500 megawatts, while Estonia is approaching 700 megawatts. Irbe pointed out that Lithuania currently has more than 20 times Latvia's wind energy capacity.
Lithuania is also commissioning roughly another 1,000 megawatts of wind capacity, meaning its total installed wind capacity could reach around 3,500 megawatts by year's end. Latvia has also seen some progress this year, with two wind farms totalling 90 megawatts commissioned, while about 60 megawatts more are being brought online near Liepāja.
