Released May 12, 2022 | SUGAR LAND
en
Written by John Egan for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The world's renewable electricity generating capacity grew by a record 6% last year, and it is poised to set a new record with forecast growth exceeding 8% this year, according to a new report from the International Energy Agency (IEA) (Paris, France). If Europe develops renewables at its current pace, it may be able to dramatically reduce its imports of Russian natural gas to generate electricity by 2023, IEA said in its Renewable Energy Market Update, released May 11.
"Energy market developments in recent months--especially in Europe--have proven once again the essential role of renewables in improving energy security, in addition to their well-established effectiveness at reducing emissions," said IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol. "Cutting red tape, accelerating permitting and providing the right incentives for faster deployment of renewables are some of the most important actions governments can take to address today's energy security and market challenges, while keeping alive the possibility of reaching our international climate goals."
On a global basis, renewable energy generating capacity grew nearly 295 gigawatts (GW) in 2021, even higher than projected growth of 290 GW that the IEA made last December. Solar power continued to grow, accounting for about 150 GW of renewables' growth in 2021. However, wind-power additions last year declined from its record year of 2020. Hydroelectric capacity additions increased in 2021.
Click on the image at right to see the growth of different forms of renewable energy over the 2019-2021 period.
Renewable electric capacity additions could reach about 320 GW this year, the agency said, assuming governments enact policies to support wind, solar and other types of non-emitting electric generation. Solar photovoltaic (PV) is on course to account for 60% of global renewable power growth in 2022, followed by wind and hydropower, the agency said.
On a country or regional basis, China continued to account for the lion's share of renewable generation additions. Nearly 50% of all renewable energy generation that came online last year was located in China, the IEA said. That country added slightly under 140 GW of new renewables last year, down slightly from its record in 2020. Aggressive renewables development in Europe caused capacity there to grow nearly 25% in 2021, to about 50 GW. Capacity additions were flat in the U.S. last year, but they grew sharply in India and Latin America.
Click on the image at right to see the national and regional renewable energy capacity additions for 2019-2021.
Although the cost of building solar and wind generation rose last year--a victim of tariffs, supply-chain snags, and a shortage of skilled labor and materials--wind and solar power remained competitive with coal- and gas-fired generation, as the cost of those fossil fuels rose sharply, the IEA said.
Click on the image at right to see capital cost estimates for wind and solar since 2015, with a projection for 2022 and 2023.
The IEA's previous report on the renewable energy market, issued last December, forecast that 2021 would be a record year of additions. But when project activity for that year was fully tallied, China, Latin America and Europe had greater-than-projected growth in renewables. In the U.S., by contrast, actual capacity additions fell about 9% than the amount forecasted in that report. For more on IEA's December 2021 renewable energy market forecast, see December 6, 2021, article - IEA Report on Renewables: Ever Faster Growth Needed to Achieve Net-Zero Emissions by 2050.
Click on the image at right to see how actual 2021 renewable energy capacity additions differed from a late-2021 projection from the IEA.
The IEA report noted many ways that Russia's invasion of Ukraine has scrambled the energy world. It estimated that between 100 terawatt-hours (TWh) to 200 TWh of the EU's electricity was generated by natural gas imported from Russia over the 2011-2021 period. The agency projected that "incremental" growth of renewable generation in the EU over the 2021-2023 period could generate about 180 TWh of electricity, almost enough to completely back out the EU's power burn fueled by Russian gas.
Click on the image at right to see the approximate amount of electricity the EU countries generated from Russian natural gas between 2011 and 2021, and how much of that gas could be displaced by the continued growth of renewable energy.
"With current (renewable energy) deployment trends, wind and solar PV expansion in the European Union has the potential to reduce the dependence on Russian gas use in electricity significantly," the report said. "However, the contribution of variable renewables will also depend on policies on energy efficiency measures keeping demand in check and the phase-out or phasedown policies for coal and nuclear energy in several member states."
The report commented, "While looming market uncertainties increase challenges, the new focus on energy security--especially in the European Union--also is triggering an unprecedented policy momentum towards accelerating energy efficiency and renewables. Ultimately, the forecast of renewable markets for 2023 and beyond will depend on whether new and stronger policies will be introduced and implemented in the next six months."
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the world's leading provider of market intelligence across the upstream, midstream and downstream energy markets and all other major industrial markets. IIR's Global Market Intelligence Platform (GMI) supports our end-users across their core businesses, and helps them connect trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated project opportunities. Follow IIR on: LinkedIn.
"Energy market developments in recent months--especially in Europe--have proven once again the essential role of renewables in improving energy security, in addition to their well-established effectiveness at reducing emissions," said IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol. "Cutting red tape, accelerating permitting and providing the right incentives for faster deployment of renewables are some of the most important actions governments can take to address today's energy security and market challenges, while keeping alive the possibility of reaching our international climate goals."
On a global basis, renewable energy generating capacity grew nearly 295 gigawatts (GW) in 2021, even higher than projected growth of 290 GW that the IEA made last December. Solar power continued to grow, accounting for about 150 GW of renewables' growth in 2021. However, wind-power additions last year declined from its record year of 2020. Hydroelectric capacity additions increased in 2021.
Renewable electric capacity additions could reach about 320 GW this year, the agency said, assuming governments enact policies to support wind, solar and other types of non-emitting electric generation. Solar photovoltaic (PV) is on course to account for 60% of global renewable power growth in 2022, followed by wind and hydropower, the agency said.
On a country or regional basis, China continued to account for the lion's share of renewable generation additions. Nearly 50% of all renewable energy generation that came online last year was located in China, the IEA said. That country added slightly under 140 GW of new renewables last year, down slightly from its record in 2020. Aggressive renewables development in Europe caused capacity there to grow nearly 25% in 2021, to about 50 GW. Capacity additions were flat in the U.S. last year, but they grew sharply in India and Latin America.
Although the cost of building solar and wind generation rose last year--a victim of tariffs, supply-chain snags, and a shortage of skilled labor and materials--wind and solar power remained competitive with coal- and gas-fired generation, as the cost of those fossil fuels rose sharply, the IEA said.
The IEA's previous report on the renewable energy market, issued last December, forecast that 2021 would be a record year of additions. But when project activity for that year was fully tallied, China, Latin America and Europe had greater-than-projected growth in renewables. In the U.S., by contrast, actual capacity additions fell about 9% than the amount forecasted in that report. For more on IEA's December 2021 renewable energy market forecast, see December 6, 2021, article - IEA Report on Renewables: Ever Faster Growth Needed to Achieve Net-Zero Emissions by 2050.
The IEA report noted many ways that Russia's invasion of Ukraine has scrambled the energy world. It estimated that between 100 terawatt-hours (TWh) to 200 TWh of the EU's electricity was generated by natural gas imported from Russia over the 2011-2021 period. The agency projected that "incremental" growth of renewable generation in the EU over the 2021-2023 period could generate about 180 TWh of electricity, almost enough to completely back out the EU's power burn fueled by Russian gas.
"With current (renewable energy) deployment trends, wind and solar PV expansion in the European Union has the potential to reduce the dependence on Russian gas use in electricity significantly," the report said. "However, the contribution of variable renewables will also depend on policies on energy efficiency measures keeping demand in check and the phase-out or phasedown policies for coal and nuclear energy in several member states."
The report commented, "While looming market uncertainties increase challenges, the new focus on energy security--especially in the European Union--also is triggering an unprecedented policy momentum towards accelerating energy efficiency and renewables. Ultimately, the forecast of renewable markets for 2023 and beyond will depend on whether new and stronger policies will be introduced and implemented in the next six months."
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the world's leading provider of market intelligence across the upstream, midstream and downstream energy markets and all other major industrial markets. IIR's Global Market Intelligence Platform (GMI) supports our end-users across their core businesses, and helps them connect trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated project opportunities. Follow IIR on: LinkedIn.
