A lack of investment in green energy is putting the world on track to exceed 1.5 degrees of warming, which scientists have defined as a key threshold in global efforts to halt climate change.
The findings were published Thursday by renewable energy think tank REN21. The group said in its annual status report on global clean energy supply and demand that increases in green spending last year were not enough to prevent greenhouse gas emissions from rising.
REN21 Executive Director Rana Adib said: “Despite another record year in terms of renewable energy growth, at the same time energy demand is increasing and the pace of renewable energy deployment is catching up. “It’s not enough,” he said. In an interview.
Last year, global renewable power capacity reached a record 473 gigawatts, a 36% increase from 2022 as the industry continues to grow, according to REN21. In 2023, more than $600 billion in new investment was channeled into renewable power and fuels.
However, according to REN21, to curb global warming, investment will need to reach about $1.3 trillion annually by the end of 2010. This estimate is based on the goals set out in the Paris Agreement.
“We have not even reached 50% of our annual requirement,” Adib said. “The government is working, but it must be accompanied by action.”
Moreover, investments in renewable energy are unevenly distributed, with the developing markets that need it most missing out the most. According to REN21, 43% of clean investments last year were made in China, 20% in Europe and 15% in the United States. Meanwhile, less than 4% went to Africa or the Middle East.
That’s because poorer countries pay more to establish clean energy supplies. Adib said the average capital cost of such projects in developing countries is about 10%, more than double the capital cost of renewable energy in developed countries.
This is “an important challenge that must be addressed to ensure a global transition,” she said.
At the same time, public funds continue to flow into fossil fuels in the form of subsidies, with around 20% of funding for energy projects from donor countries and multilateral development banks going to non-renewable sources. This was revealed through REN21’s investigation.
Adib said “there is money” for clean energy. But “the economic signals and the financial signals are not going in the right direction.”
Copyright 2024 Bloomberg.
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