Released October 17, 2017 | GALWAY, IRELAND
en
Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--Having pioneered the drive for large-scale renewable energy, the European Union (EU) will see slower growth in renewables over the next five years.
The latest in-depth report, Renewables 2017, from the International Energy Agency (IEA) highlights the continued shift in growth from the EU to China, India and the U.S. Over the five year period to 2022, renewable growth in the EU will be 40% lower compared with the previous five-year period.
"Overall, weaker electricity demand, overcapacity, and limited visibility on forthcoming auction capacity volumes in some markets remain challenges to renewable growth," the IEA stated. "Policy uncertainty beyond 2020 remains high. If adopted, the new EU Renewable Energy Directive covering the post-2020 period would address this challenge by requiring a three-year visibility over support policies, thereby improving the market's predictability."
The report highlights the meteoric growth of solar power. New solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity grew by 50% last year, with China accounting for almost half of the global expansion. For the first time, solar PV additions rose faster than any other fuel, surpassing the net growth in coal. This growth helped boost the overall renewables market, with renewables accounting for almost two-thirds of net new power capacity around the world last year, with almost 165 gigawatts (GW) coming online. By 2022, renewable electricity capacity should increase by 43%.
"We see renewables growing by about 1,000 GW by 2022, which equals about half of the current global capacity in coal power, which took 80 years to build," said Dr. Fatih Birol, the executive director of the IEA. "What we are witnessing is the birth of a new era in solar PV. We expect that solar PV capacity growth will be higher than any other renewable technology through 2022."
The forecast this year for renewables growth is 12% higher than last year, thanks mostly to solar PV upward revisions in China and India. China, India and the U.S. will account for two-thirds of global renewable expansion by 2022.
In power generation, renewable electricity is expected to grow by more than a third by 2022 to more than 8,000 terawatt -hours, accounting for 30% of power generation, up from 24% in 2016. The growth in renewable generation will be twice as large as that of gas and coal combined. Though coal remains the largest source of electricity generation in 2022, renewables close the generation gap with coal by half in just five years.
"China remains the undisputed leader of renewable electricity capacity expansion over the forecast period with over 360-GW of capacity coming online, or 40% of the global total," the IEA stated. "China's renewables growth is largely driven by concerns about air pollution and capacity targets that were outlined in the country's 13th five-year plan to 2020."
The rapid deployment in solar PV and wind last year was accompanied by record-low auction prices, which fell as low as 3 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh). Industrial Info reported on the huge impact that competitive power auctions are having in driving down costs for windfarms. Earlier this year, a number of proposed German offshore projects became the first windfarms in the world to be built without government financial aid. For additional information, see April 20, 2017, article - World's First 'Subsidy-Free' Windfarms Get German OK.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Our European headquarters are located in Galway, Ireland. Follow IIR Europe on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn For more information on our European coverage send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.eu or visit us online at Industrial Info Europe.
Project(s) Plant(s)
The latest in-depth report, Renewables 2017, from the International Energy Agency (IEA) highlights the continued shift in growth from the EU to China, India and the U.S. Over the five year period to 2022, renewable growth in the EU will be 40% lower compared with the previous five-year period.
"Overall, weaker electricity demand, overcapacity, and limited visibility on forthcoming auction capacity volumes in some markets remain challenges to renewable growth," the IEA stated. "Policy uncertainty beyond 2020 remains high. If adopted, the new EU Renewable Energy Directive covering the post-2020 period would address this challenge by requiring a three-year visibility over support policies, thereby improving the market's predictability."
The report highlights the meteoric growth of solar power. New solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity grew by 50% last year, with China accounting for almost half of the global expansion. For the first time, solar PV additions rose faster than any other fuel, surpassing the net growth in coal. This growth helped boost the overall renewables market, with renewables accounting for almost two-thirds of net new power capacity around the world last year, with almost 165 gigawatts (GW) coming online. By 2022, renewable electricity capacity should increase by 43%.
"We see renewables growing by about 1,000 GW by 2022, which equals about half of the current global capacity in coal power, which took 80 years to build," said Dr. Fatih Birol, the executive director of the IEA. "What we are witnessing is the birth of a new era in solar PV. We expect that solar PV capacity growth will be higher than any other renewable technology through 2022."
The forecast this year for renewables growth is 12% higher than last year, thanks mostly to solar PV upward revisions in China and India. China, India and the U.S. will account for two-thirds of global renewable expansion by 2022.
In power generation, renewable electricity is expected to grow by more than a third by 2022 to more than 8,000 terawatt -hours, accounting for 30% of power generation, up from 24% in 2016. The growth in renewable generation will be twice as large as that of gas and coal combined. Though coal remains the largest source of electricity generation in 2022, renewables close the generation gap with coal by half in just five years.
"China remains the undisputed leader of renewable electricity capacity expansion over the forecast period with over 360-GW of capacity coming online, or 40% of the global total," the IEA stated. "China's renewables growth is largely driven by concerns about air pollution and capacity targets that were outlined in the country's 13th five-year plan to 2020."
The rapid deployment in solar PV and wind last year was accompanied by record-low auction prices, which fell as low as 3 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh). Industrial Info reported on the huge impact that competitive power auctions are having in driving down costs for windfarms. Earlier this year, a number of proposed German offshore projects became the first windfarms in the world to be built without government financial aid. For additional information, see April 20, 2017, article - World's First 'Subsidy-Free' Windfarms Get German OK.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Our European headquarters are located in Galway, Ireland. Follow IIR Europe on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn For more information on our European coverage send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.eu or visit us online at Industrial Info Europe.
Project(s) Plant(s)
