Energy &
Utilities
Investments in Renewable Energy Top Fossil-Fuel Projects National renewable-energy policies encourage investments
By Karin Rives
other renewable energy projects outpaced fossil fuel investments in 2009 for the sec- ond year in a row, a new study from the United Nations Environment Programme shows. This was true in both the United States and in the European Union. China, meanwhile, emerged as the na-
D
tion with the single largest new investment in clean energy. A twin study (PDF, 2.3MB) released by Paris-based Renew- able Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century, REN21, echoed those results. The growth in renewables was especially noteworthy in developing economies, the group said, which now possess more than half of global clean-energy capacity. Chi-
espite a continued weak global econ- omy, investments in solar, wind and
na last year surpassed the United States to become the top investor in wind power and India ranked fifth — although the United States still had the largest installed capacity of wind power, 35.1 gigawatts, by late 2009, the organizations found. The studies looked at both government
and private-sector investments. “The sus- tainable-energy investment story of 2009 was one of resilience, frustration and de- termination,” U.N. Under Secretary-Gen- eral Achim Steiner said in a statement. Despite the economic downturn and dis- appointment by those seeking a binding international climate treaty, “there was determination on the part of many indus- try actors and governments … to trans- form the financial and economic crisis
into an opportunity for greener growth,” he said. In Europe, 60 percent of all ener- gy capacity installed in 2009 came from renewable sources, according to the re- ports. One-fifth of the continent’s energy is now “green.” Europe spent the equivalent of $43.7 billion on renewable energy proj- ects last year, a decline of $4.7 billion from 2008 attributed to the slow economy. The United States climbed to just more
than 50 percent renewables out of all en- ergy investments, and an American com- pany — First Solar — became the first to produce more than 1 gigawatt of solar power in one year. The United States is now the world’s largest producer of etha- nol and of geothermal and biomass power. Thirty-six states and the District of Co-
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www.blackeoejournal.com The Black E.O.E. Journal
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