Wind energy technology is evolving towards larger machines (longer blades, taller towers and more powerful generators). Scaling up wind turbines is a challenging task, which requires innovative solutions as well as new configurations and designs. The size of wind turbines (in terms of rotor diameter, hub height and rated power) has increased extraordinary from 30 m rotor diameter, 30 m of hub height and 300 kW rated power, usual in the late 1980s, to 92.7 m rotor diameter, 87.7 m of height and 2.1 MW on average at the end of 2014. However, technological evolution has not only been focused on the scaling up process but also on developing innovative solutions that minimize costs at the same time as they deal with aspects of different nature, such as grid code requirements, reliability, quality of the wind resource or prices and availability of certain commodities, among others.This paper analyses the evolution of wind technology from a market‐based perspective by identifying trends in the most relevant technological indicators at the same time as stressing the key differentiating aspects between regions/markets. Evolution and trends in indicators such as rated power, rotor diameter, hub height, specific power, wind class, drive train configuration and power control systems are presented and analysed, showing an intense and fast technological development, which is enabling wind energy to reduce costs and becoming increasingly more competitive with conventional fuel‐based generating technologies. © 2016 The Authors Wind Energy Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

This paper presents an overview of the regulatory framework for wind energy in European Union Member States. The analysis covers three main aspects of regulatory framework: support schemes, electrical grid issues and potential barriers for wind power deployment. The aim is not just to provide an updated picture of current (early-2015) regulatory framework, but also to analyse the past evolution and trends (in order to achieve the targets of renewable energy share set for 2020). Each country implements a specific regulatory framework driven by several factors: their own renewable energy targets, local availability of renewable resources, energy mix structure, existing infrastructures as well as other factors such as public perception or geographical distribution of electricity generation and consumption points. The results presented in this paper show a trend for increasing the market exposure of wind generators; feed-in premiums and competitive bidding procedures to establish the support level are gaining prominence in the last few years. In relation grid issues, it is a common practice that new wind generators only bear the grid extension costs to the closest connection point; priority or guaranteed access is granted in most Member States and wind generators are usually not demanded to meet balancing requirements (this is expected to change in the next few years following the new guidelines provided by the European Commission). The analysis of potential barriers for wind energy deployment shows that the stability of regulatory framework is one of the most important concerns for investors. Finally, actual deployment over the last few years has been linked with evolution of regulatory frameworks. This analysis shows that some Member States have shown a strong commitment supporting wind energy; however, in other countries the support has not been enough to stimulate the desired level of investment.JRC.F.6-Energy Technology Policy Outloo