Yes, Denmark did definitely play a role. When I was on summer vacation with my parents in Denmark in 1978, we visited the Tvind generator (http://tvindkraft.dk) which had just started running a couple of months before, well before Growian (the failed project on Kaiser-Wilhelm-Koog mentioned in the article). Even if the “Energiewende” hadn’t started yet in Germany, this project did definitely have the spirit.

One aim was to demonstrate an alternative to nuclear energy. Folks at the time were opposing the nuclear plant in Barsebäck (in Sweden, but very close to Denmark), which started production during that time. They argued that 750 turbines like this one would generate the same amount of electricity as the Barsebäck plant, but would only cost half as much money to build.

In 1978, we took a brochure with photographs and documentation of the construction process. In retrospect, the most ironic part of the brochure is at the end, where they collected the refusal letters that they received in response to their application for funding. One development fund answered that any follow-up on their application for funding would be a waste of time since it was very unlikely that their development could ever lead to a profitable activity for Danish industry.