New Energy World™
New Energy World™ embraces the whole energy industry as it connects and converges to address the decarbonisation challenge. It covers progress being made across the industry, from the dynamics under way to reduce emissions in oil and gas, through improvements to the efficiency of energy conversion and use, to cutting-edge initiatives in renewable and low-carbon technologies.
Renewable power is set to break another global record in 2022 despite headwinds from higher costs and supply chain bottlenecks, says the International Energy Agency (IEA) in its latest market analysis. Unprecedented growth in capacity additions is being driven mainly by solar PV in China and Europe as renewables demonstrate their energy security benefits amid market turmoil.
The world added a record 295 GW of new renewable power capacity in 2021, overcoming supply chain challenges, construction delays and high raw material prices, according to the IEA’s latest Renewable energy market update. Global capacity additions are expected to rise this year to 320 GW – equivalent to nearly the entire electricity demand of Germany or matching the European Union’s (EU) total electricity generation from natural gas. Solar PV is reported to be on course to account for 60% of global renewable power growth in 2022, followed by wind and hydropower.
In the EU, annual additions jumped by almost 30% to 36 GW in 2021, finally exceeding the bloc’s previous record of 35 GW set a decade ago, says the report. The additional renewables capacity commissioned for 2022 and 2023 has the potential to significantly reduce the EU’s dependence on Russian gas in the power sector. However, the actual contribution will depend on the success of parallel energy efficiency measures to keep the region’s energy demand in check, notes the IEA.
