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| Solar Power Plant in ALMERE, the Netherlands |
Solar power dominated a global ranking of new renewable energy
investments “like never before” last year, with China accounting for
more than half of the world’s new capacity, the UN said on Thursday (5
April). Investments in Europe, on the other hand, recorded a massive
drop.
The world installed a record 98 gigawatts of new solar capacity in
2017, far more than the net additions of any other technology –
renewable, fossil fuel or nuclear – according to new data.
The ‘Global Trends in Renewable Energy Investment 2018’ report was
released on Thursday (5 April) by UN Environment, the Frankfurt School –
UNEP Collaborating Centre, and Bloomberg New Energy Finance.
At $160.8 billion, solar power attracted far more investment than any
other technology. China saw “an unprecedented boom” in solar that saw
some 53 gigawatts added – more than half the global total – with $86.5
billion invested.
‘’China’s clean energy push is impressive and good news for the
planet,” said trade association SolarPower Europe, citing “a near 80%
red
Overall, renewable energies were far ahead, at $279.8 billion,
towering above new investment in coal and gas generation capacity, which
reached an estimated $103 billion.
“The world added more solar capacity than coal, gas, and nuclear
plants combined,” said Nils Stieglitz, President of Frankfurt School of
Finance & Management. “This shows where we are heading, although the
fact that renewables altogether are still far from providing the
majority of electricity means that we still have a long way to go.”
Last year was the eighth in a row in which global investment in
renewables exceeded $200 billion, the report said. Since 2004, the world
has invested $2.9 trillion in these green energy sources.
But some regions like the United States and Europe have clearly
fallen behind. In the US, investments dropped 6%, to $40.5 billion. In
Europe, the fall was steeper, at 36%, to reach $40.9 billion. The
biggest drops were recorded in the United Kingdom (down 65% to $7.6
billion) and Germany (down 35% to $10.4 billion).
“In countries that saw lower investment, it generally reflected a
mixture of changes in policy support, the timing of large project
financings, such as in offshore wind, and lower capital costs per
megawatt,” said Angus McCrone, Chief Editor of Bloomberg New Energy
Finance and lead author of the report.
Read more: China outshines Europe in 2017 clean power investment ranking – EURACTIV.com
