According to the International Energy Agency, the global installation of renewable electricity will reach a record level in 2020, in sharp contrast with the declines caused by the coronavirus pandemic in the fossil fuel market.
The IEA study released on Tuesday says nearly 90 percent of existing electricity production in 2020 would be renewable, with only 10 percent generated by gas and coal. The development puts green electricity on course to become the primary power source in 2025, replacing coal, which has ruled for the past 50 years.
The understanding of the need to address climate change by reducing carbon dioxide emissions has enabled renewable energy important to investors. The IEA notes that shares in renewable equipment makers and project developers have outpaced the most major stock market and that the share price in green energy companies has almost doubled since December 2019.
It has been proposed that deployment will speed up even quicker if President-Elect Joe Biden’s politics are introduced. The US is one of the largest renewables markets in the world.
Fatih Birol, executive director of the IEA, said,” Renewable power is trying to defy the difficulties created by the pandemic, exhibiting significant growth while others are battling fuels. The sector’s stability and optimistic prospects are strongly outlined by investors’ continued strong appetite. In 2020, fossil fuels had a tumultuous period as Covid-related policies prompted demand to fall from transport and other sectors.
In 2010, hydropower generated 77 percent of green power, but in 2020 that has fallen to 45 percent. Electricity, however, accounts for just around one-fifth of all energy consumption, with the combustion of fuels making up the majority of energy pollution for transport, industry, and heating.
The IEA predicts that led by China and the US, where producers are striving to reap the benefits of expiring incentive schemes, new renewable capacity worldwide should grow by a whopping 200 gigawatts in 2020.
There is indeed faster growth to emerge in 2021, the IEA said, when the key drivers will be India and the European Union. But under existing policies, growth could slow marginally in 2022, the IEA cautioned.
