Financing for wind energy is under pressure, but not for the reasons often cited. According to Ronald Huisman, Professor of Sustainable Energy Finance at Erasmus School of Economics, the problem isn't just rising interest rates or higher construction costs. ‘We always talk about the costs, but almost never about the revenues.’
Huisman has been analysing developments in the energy market for 25 years. Since liberalisation in the late 1990s, market prices have become the determining factor. With the rise of large-scale wind and solar energy, the dynamics have shifted further: renewable sources produce when nature allows, not when the price is favorable. This creates significant price volatility. And it directly affects the business case for wind farms.
‘There is sufficient capital and willingness to invest’
According to Huisman, this represents a fundamental error. Wind and solar farms are often presented as "cheaper" based on average unit costs. But conventional power plants can determine their own production times, while wind farms must deliver as soon as the wind blows, even at low prices. ‘If you want a fair comparison, you have to compare conventional energy with wind plus storage,’ he argues. Only then will a comparable yield profile emerge.
The consequences are visible in practice: tenders for offshore wind remain empty, or bidders withdraw. Governments often respond with subsidies, but according to Huisman, this is treating the symptoms. ‘There is sufficient capital and willingness to invest. The projects are fantastic technologically, but not as a business case.’
Lack of systems thinking
The core of the problem, according to Huisman, is a lack of systems thinking. The energy transition is strongly focused on technology, while economic logic remains underexposed. Solutions lie in combining technologies (such as wind with storage) and in new business models. Long-term contracts with fixed customers, such as direct supply to data centers, offer more predictability than complete exposure to the stock market price. ‘We shouldn't just look at the technology, but at the entire system. Because without realistic yield analysis and innovative business models, the wind sector risks stalling, despite impressive technological progress.’
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Read the full interview (in Dutch) with Ronald Huisman here as part of WindDay 2026, an event taking place on 11 June at the Jaarbeurs in Utrecht and organised by the wind energy industry association NedZero.
For more information, please contact Ronald de Groot, Media & Public Relations Officer at Erasmus School of Economics: rdegroot@ese.eur.nl, mobile: +31 6 53 641 846.
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