- Email: [email protected]
By the numbers
About: Reginald Tucker is the US Editor of Renewable Energy Focus magazine.
Editorial
PUBLISHER AND E D I T O R -AT- L A R G E
David Hopwood [email protected] Tel: +44 (0)1865 843648 Fax: +44 (0)1865 843973 www.renewableenergyfocus.com US EDITOR
Reginald Tucker E D I T O R I A L C O N S U LTA N T A N D C O N T R I B U TO R
Gail Rajgor gail.rajgor@ renewableenergyfocus.com Tel: +44 (0)1986 784336 F U E L C E L L S A N D E N E R GY S TO R A G E
Steve Barrett C O N T E N T D E V E LO P M E N T E D I TO R
Amanda Jacob P R O D U C T I O N S U P P O RT M A N A G E R
Lin Lucas [email protected] Tel: +44 (0)1865 843009 Fax: +44 (0)1865 843973 R E G U L A R C O N T R I B U TO R S :
Paula Mints, George Marsh, Sarosh Bana, Joyce Laird, Felicity Carus, Rachel Parkes PRESS RELEASES
We welcome your press releases and announcements. Please send your news, company announcements and PR to press_releases@ renewableenergyfocus.com. We respectfully regret that we can’t acknowledge receipt, or confirm whether or not we can use any editorial material in the magazine or on the website. F E AT U R E A RT I C L E S
We accept unsolicited commissions both for the magazine and the website, but please approach the editor/ assistant editor in advance with ideas/ synopsis for your proposed article. Please read the magazine in the first instance for an idea of the content we publish. K E Y PA RT N E R : International Solar Energy Society (ISES) Wiesentalstr. 50 79115 Freiburg, Germany Tel: +49 761 45906 0 Fax: +49 761 45906 99 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.ises.org
S
By the numbers
I
F YOU are a stickler for statistics, then you will likely appreciate the July/August issue of Renewable Energy Focus magazine — a special edition featuring the annual “Global Renewable Power Generation Report.”
The comprehensive, 20-pluspage report — generated by German engineering consultancy Lahmeyer International — provides a sectorby-sector analysis using the latest information from the “Power Generation from Renewables-Market Update 2013” study. It not only provides specific details related to renewable energy development, generation and consumption around the world, but it also includes invaluable commentary and insights designed to put all that data into the proper perspective. One key revelation of the report (I’m hesitant to call it a “highlight”) is the summary showing an 11% drop-off in total worldwide renewable energy investment in 2013 (see page 18). The falloff was especially palpable in the wind segment, which suffered a significant setback as a result of a crippling delay in the prolongation of PTCs in the US, the report states. On the plus side, the wind energy sector — despite coming off a down year — is still very much a significant contributor in terms of aggregate renewable energy capacity. In fact, the American Wind Energy Association recently reported that the US wind industry installed more capacity in the first quarter of 2014 than it did throughout three quarters of 2013! So, it appears as though things are looking up again. More good news: When considering all renewable energy technologies, the cumulative installed power capacity grew nearly 6% in 2013. This trend was led by hydropower, followed by wind and geothermal. In solar, new PV installations surpassed new wind projects — a first, according to the report. I find these tidbits particularly encouraging in light of two newly released reports tracking both renewable
energy investment and generating capacity in the first half of 2014. According to the latest “Energy Infrastructure Update” report, solar, wind, biomass, geothermal and hydropower power provided 55.7% of new installed US electrical generating capacity in the first six months of 2014. Solar alone accounted for nearly a third of new US generating capacity (32.1%) thus far in 2014. Looking at the big picture, if calendar year 2011 is factored in, then renewables accounted for approximately 45% of all new electrical generating capacity over the past three-and-half years. In fact, since January 1, 2011 renewables have provided more new electrical generating capacity than natural gas (31,345 MW vs. 29,176 MW) and nearly four times coal (8,235 MW). Let those numbers marinate for a bit! Looking at new investments in 2014, the global clean energy sector received an infusion of more than $66 billion in the second quarter — that’s an 8% increase over the corresponding period in 2013, according to the Clean Energy Pipeline. That’s largely due to (ironically) a surge in onshore wind investment in emerging markets. What’s more, clean energy project finance totaled $40.1 billion in 2Q14, a 4% uptick over the $38.5 billion invested in 1Q14 and a 12% increase over the $35.8 billion invested during the corresponding quarter in 2013. All in all, project finance recorded a five-quarter high in 2Q14. “It is perhaps a little early to make predictions, but based on investment levels during the first six months of 2014 last year’s total will likely be eclipsed,” said Douglas Lloyd, CEO of Clean Energy Pipeline. “This is very positive news given that total clean energy investment posted annual year-on-year declines in both 2012 and 2013.”
July/August 2014 | Renewable Energy Focus
1
Editorial
PUBLISHER AND E D I T O R -AT- L A R G E
David Hopwood [email protected] Tel: +44 (0)1865 843648 Fax: +44 (0)1865 843973 www.renewableenergyfocus.com US EDITOR
Reginald Tucker E D I T O R I A L C O N S U LTA N T A N D C O N T R I B U TO R
Gail Rajgor gail.rajgor@ renewableenergyfocus.com Tel: +44 (0)1986 784336 F U E L C E L L S A N D E N E R GY S TO R A G E
Steve Barrett C O N T E N T D E V E LO P M E N T E D I TO R
Amanda Jacob P R O D U C T I O N S U P P O RT M A N A G E R
Lin Lucas [email protected] Tel: +44 (0)1865 843009 Fax: +44 (0)1865 843973 R E G U L A R C O N T R I B U TO R S :
Paula Mints, George Marsh, Sarosh Bana, Joyce Laird, Felicity Carus, Rachel Parkes PRESS RELEASES
We welcome your press releases and announcements. Please send your news, company announcements and PR to press_releases@ renewableenergyfocus.com. We respectfully regret that we can’t acknowledge receipt, or confirm whether or not we can use any editorial material in the magazine or on the website. F E AT U R E A RT I C L E S
We accept unsolicited commissions both for the magazine and the website, but please approach the editor/ assistant editor in advance with ideas/ synopsis for your proposed article. Please read the magazine in the first instance for an idea of the content we publish. K E Y PA RT N E R : International Solar Energy Society (ISES) Wiesentalstr. 50 79115 Freiburg, Germany Tel: +49 761 45906 0 Fax: +49 761 45906 99 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.ises.org
S
By the numbers
I
F YOU are a stickler for statistics, then you will likely appreciate the July/August issue of Renewable Energy Focus magazine — a special edition featuring the annual “Global Renewable Power Generation Report.”
The comprehensive, 20-pluspage report — generated by German engineering consultancy Lahmeyer International — provides a sectorby-sector analysis using the latest information from the “Power Generation from Renewables-Market Update 2013” study. It not only provides specific details related to renewable energy development, generation and consumption around the world, but it also includes invaluable commentary and insights designed to put all that data into the proper perspective. One key revelation of the report (I’m hesitant to call it a “highlight”) is the summary showing an 11% drop-off in total worldwide renewable energy investment in 2013 (see page 18). The falloff was especially palpable in the wind segment, which suffered a significant setback as a result of a crippling delay in the prolongation of PTCs in the US, the report states. On the plus side, the wind energy sector — despite coming off a down year — is still very much a significant contributor in terms of aggregate renewable energy capacity. In fact, the American Wind Energy Association recently reported that the US wind industry installed more capacity in the first quarter of 2014 than it did throughout three quarters of 2013! So, it appears as though things are looking up again. More good news: When considering all renewable energy technologies, the cumulative installed power capacity grew nearly 6% in 2013. This trend was led by hydropower, followed by wind and geothermal. In solar, new PV installations surpassed new wind projects — a first, according to the report. I find these tidbits particularly encouraging in light of two newly released reports tracking both renewable
energy investment and generating capacity in the first half of 2014. According to the latest “Energy Infrastructure Update” report, solar, wind, biomass, geothermal and hydropower power provided 55.7% of new installed US electrical generating capacity in the first six months of 2014. Solar alone accounted for nearly a third of new US generating capacity (32.1%) thus far in 2014. Looking at the big picture, if calendar year 2011 is factored in, then renewables accounted for approximately 45% of all new electrical generating capacity over the past three-and-half years. In fact, since January 1, 2011 renewables have provided more new electrical generating capacity than natural gas (31,345 MW vs. 29,176 MW) and nearly four times coal (8,235 MW). Let those numbers marinate for a bit! Looking at new investments in 2014, the global clean energy sector received an infusion of more than $66 billion in the second quarter — that’s an 8% increase over the corresponding period in 2013, according to the Clean Energy Pipeline. That’s largely due to (ironically) a surge in onshore wind investment in emerging markets. What’s more, clean energy project finance totaled $40.1 billion in 2Q14, a 4% uptick over the $38.5 billion invested in 1Q14 and a 12% increase over the $35.8 billion invested during the corresponding quarter in 2013. All in all, project finance recorded a five-quarter high in 2Q14. “It is perhaps a little early to make predictions, but based on investment levels during the first six months of 2014 last year’s total will likely be eclipsed,” said Douglas Lloyd, CEO of Clean Energy Pipeline. “This is very positive news given that total clean energy investment posted annual year-on-year declines in both 2012 and 2013.”
July/August 2014 | Renewable Energy Focus
1