The world spent a record $501.3 billion in 2020 on renewable power, electric vehicles and other technologies to cut the global energy system’s dependence on fossil fuels.
The investments in the transition to a low-carbon economy marked a 9% increase over 2019 and came despite disruptions from the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a report out Tuesday from BloombergNEF.
The growth wasn’t spread evenly across the globe. Investment in renewable power capacity, which accounted for the the biggest chunk of spending tallied by BNEF, soared 52% in Europe compared to last year. But it fell 20% in the U.S. and 12% in China.
The record investment comes as pressure mounts to cut greenhouse-gas emissions and avoid the most dire effects of climate change. But even the massive increase in spending on wind and solar farms, energy storage and EVs won’t be enough to meet the Paris Agreement’s goal to limit global warming to below 2 degrees Celsius.
“It’s very encouraging that investment is taking place at a high level, but it’s well short of what would be required to put the world on a path of 2 degrees of global warming,” Angus McCrone, chief editor of BNEF, said in an interview.
Stuart Turley is President and CEO of Sandstone Group, a top energy data, and finance consultancy working with companies all throughout the energy value chain. Sandstone helps both small and large-cap energy companies to develop customized applications and manage data workflows/integration throughout the entire business. With experience implementing enterprise networks, supercomputers, and cellular tower solutions, Sandstone has become a trusted source and advisor. He is also the Executive Publisher of www.energynewsbeat.com, the best source for 24/7 energy news coverage, and is the Co-Host of the energy news video and Podcast Energy News Beat. Energy should be used to elevate humanity out of poverty. Let's use all forms of energy with the least impact on the environment while being sustainable without printing money. Stu is also a co-host on the 3 Podcasters Walk into A Bar podcast with David Blackmon, and Rey Trevino.
Stuart is guided by over 30 years of business management experience, having successfully built and help sell multiple small and medium businesses while consulting for numerous Fortune 500 companies. He holds a B.A in Business Administration from Oklahoma State and an MBA from Oklahoma City University.
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