Power surge in clean energy investment

AUSTRALIA was a world leader in clean energy investment growth last year, according to a global report.

World clean energy investment totalled $US333.5 billion ($A416 billion) last year, up 3 per cent from 2016 and the second highest annual figure ever.

It took cumulative investment since 2010 to $US2.5 trillion.

Australia contributed $US9 billion in investment, an increase of 150 per cent, according to analysis from Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

Apart from Australia’s surge, Mexico’s investment was up 516 per cent to $US6.2 billion.

China was the biggest investor, ploughing $US132.6 billion into renewable technology, up 24 per cent and setting a new record.

The next biggest investing country was the US, at $US56.9 billion, up 1 per cent on 2016 despite the less friendly tone towards renewables adopted by the

Typical utility-scale PV systems were about 25 per cent cheaper per megawatt last year than they were two years earlier. — BNEF chief executive Jon Moore

administration of Donald Trump.

Globally, solar attracted $US160.8 billion in investment, up 18 per cent on the previous year.

An extraordinary boom in photovoltaic installations made 2017 a record year for China’s investment in clean energy. This overshadowed changes elsewhere, including jumps in investment in Australia and Mexico, and declines in Japan, the UK and Germany.

BNEF chief executive Jon Moore said the 2017 total was all the more remarkable because capital costs for the leading technology continued to fall sharply.

“Typical utility-scale PV systems were about 25 per cent cheaper per megawatt last year than they were two years earlier,” he said.

China invested $US86.5 billion in solar technology last year, up 58 per cent on 2016, with an estimated 53GW of PV capacity installed – up from 30GW in 2016.

The cost of solar continues to fall in China and more projects are being deployed on rooftops, in industrial parks or elsewhere and are not restricted by government quota.

On the downside, Japan’s investment in clean energy declined by 16 per cent in 2017, to $US23.4 billion,.

Germany slipped 26 per cent to $US14.6 billion and the UK dropped 56 per cent to $US10.3 billion in the face of changes in policy support.

India’s investment was down 20 per cent to $US11 billion.