29 May 2023
Cleaner energy coming
And now some good news about sustainable development. According to the International Energy Agency [IEA] annual investment in renewable energy is up by nearly a quarter since 2021. More money is going into clean energy projects than into fossil fuels that are causing climate change.
About USD 2.8 trillion is set to be invested globally in energy in 2023, of which more than USD 1.7 trillion is expected to go to clean technologies – including renewables, electric vehicles, nuclear power, grids, storage, low-emissions fuels, efficiency improvements and heat pumps – according to the IEA’s latest World Energy Investment report. Solar power spending is expected to hit $1 billion a day.
“Clean energy is moving fast – faster than many people realize. This is clear in the investment trends, where clean technologies are pulling away from fossil fuels,” said IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol.
More people are buying heat pumps instead of gas furnaces, and electric vehicles instead of gas and diesel. The world’s biggest car makers are switching their production to electric vehicles as countries order phase-outs of internal combustion engines over the next decade or so.
Despite this good news we are far from reducing the production and use of fossil fuels. The IEA says more than USD 1 trillion, will be invested in coal, gas and oil this year. We are still far from meeting the greenhouse gas reductions needed to prevent disastrous climate change.