In January 2007 the Danish government announced a new energy strategy aiming for a higher share of renewable energy in the Danish energy system. The long-term vision is energy independence from fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas.

The government’s goal is to double the current share of renewable energy of 15% to at least 30% by 2025. As of 2010, biomass accounts for almost half of the use of renewable energy, and wind turbines produce slightly over 20% of the total electricity consumed. In 2025, 50% of the electricity consumed might be produced by wind turbines through expansion of the total capacity from 3,000 MW to about 6,000 MW.

This new energy strategy faces several challenges. A major one is to adapt the electricity system to manage a considerably higher share of intermittent electricity produced by wind turbines. Flexible timing for electricity consumption will be an important factor, and within this context, battery (BEVs), plug-in hybrid (PHEVs), and fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) have now been assigned important roles.

In 2025, 50% of the electricity consumed might be produced by wind turbines.

From 2001 to 2006, EVs were not considered a realistic possibility for future road transportation in Denmark. However, the market success of hybrid vehicles and the new concept of plug-in hybrid vehicles have changed public opinion. In light of the new Danish target stating that 50% of the electricity consumption in 2025 should come from wind power, the combination of PHEVs and renewable energy from wind is seen as a very strong solution to some of the future challenges in the electricity and transportation sectors.

Demonstration projects with PHEVs and development of V2G technologies will be in focus in the coming years. Better Place Denmark’s full-scale introduction of battery EVs is expected to start in late 2011 and the demonstration and test activities of ChoosEV have already started and will include more that 300 new EVs in 2011. However, the expectations for growth of the numbers of hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), PHEVs, and EVs in Denmark will depend on many factors and is difficult to predict at this time.