Nothing like cool, refreshing facts to support the desperate hope for a renewable energy revolution.
New investment in green energy was up nearly one-third globally in 2010 to a record US$211 billion. That’s 32 percent above the 2009 level and more than five times that of 2004, says the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
Other facts from UNEP’s new report:
- Wind farms in China and rooftop solar panels in Europe were key drivers in the investment increase.
- China was the world leader in “financial new investment” – i.e., investment in utility-scale renewable projects and equity capital for renewable energy companies. The nation’s tally was US$48.9 billion, up 28 percent this year.
- Developing economies (which invested US$72 billion this year) overtook developed ones (US$70 billion) in financial new investment.
- Investments in small distributed capacity, e.g., rooftop solar, rose 132 percent in Germany to US$34 billion.
- Costs for renewable technologies are falling.
- Wind dominated financial new investment in large-scale renewable energy.
- Biggest percentage jumps in overall investment were in small-scale projects, up 91 percent to US$60 billion, and in government funded R&D, up 121 percent to US$5.3 billion.
“The finance industry is still recovering from the recent financial crisis,” Udo Steffens, president of the Frankfurt School of Finance and Management, said in a UNEP news release. “The fact that the industry remains heavily committed to renewables demonstrates its strong belief in the prospects of sustainable energy investments.”
So there’s hope. And now facts.
More here.