The Promises of Renewable Energy

In 2021, wind and solar generated 10% of global electricity for the first time. The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) disclosed that in 2020, renewables were the cheapest source of energy.

As solar and wind stormed the market, the cost of large scale photovoltaic (PV) projects plunged by about 85% in a decade. The global weighted-average cost of electricity for new onshore wind farms decreased from $0.053/kwh in 2019 to $0.030/kwh for the most competitive projects in 2022, without any form of financial support.

The Biden Administration’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), is set to further boost the renewables market in the U.S., financing the installation of 950 million solar panels, 120.000 wind turbines and 2.300 grid-scale batteries by 2030 - an unprecedented effort in American politics that aims to reduce one gigaton of GHG emissions by that same year. Such a bill entails ten times more climate impact than any other piece of legislation ever enacted, and its example will ripple across the globe. Aggressive policy support, heightened societal consciousness and plummeting costs mean the possibility of competitive green energy shines forth as one of the core pillars of the transition.

Moving our attention up North, in 2021 the Canadian Net-zero Emissions Accountability Act became law, placing the country’s netzero emissions targets by 2050 at the heart of legislation. Across the pond, the EU is balancing security of supply and a projected harsh winter, against an ambitious 55% reduction in GHG emissions by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2050 with its REPOWEREU strategy. Singapore is not falling short, having announced their Green Plan for 2030 in 2021, with a host of goals in place for the next decade, including the decarbonization of oil and gas, and the chemicals island of Jurong.

A couple decades ago, few would have thought wind and solar energy would become cost-efficient; if anything, they were seen as the subsidized prerogatives of a few Northern geographies. Fast forwarding to 2022, 1 TW of PV energy has been installed globally, which equates to over 6% of the world’s total energy consumption – a ramp up that is representative of the wider industry and its explosive momentum, producing around 2000% more energy worldwide than in 2011.

BILL SIWEK | PRESIDENT & CEO, TPI COMPOSITES

We are moving toward different resin types that will allow for a fully recyclable blade.

KIM FAUSING | PRESIDENT & CEO, DANFOSS

The global energy crisis is a stark reminder that the need for urgent action requires us to put energy efficiency first.