The global energy system is undergoing a rapid transformation. With the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Climate Agreement serving as inspiration, countries, cities and corporations all over the world continue to take meaningful action on renewable energy development. While a pressing need to increase momentum exists, 2018 has been a year of bold ambition and remarkable achievements.
Here are 20 reminders, from media outlets around the world, of how the energy transformation has advanced over the last 12 months.
India steams past its solar targets
Ahead of its 2022 target by four years, India reaches 20 gigawatts of solar capacity and vows to reach 100 gigawatts by that date instead.
Global cities push for renewables
Since 2015, the number of cities powered by at least 70% renewables has more than doubled. In 2017 the figure stood above 100.
Oil companies want oil out of their name
Norway’s state oil company pledges to broaden itself beyond fossil fuels, towards renewables, with a rebranding, joining ranks with a growing Nordic effort to divest from oil and gas.
Industry giants go 100% renewable
The world’s largest technology companies — Google and Apple — are now completely powered with renewables.
Kenya tackles its challenges by diversifying with renewables
Combining the power of the sun, wind, and earth, East Africa’s economic powerhouse is powering economic development and growing energy demand.
Big turbines keep getting bigger
Giant wind turbines soar to 600 feet tall and produce almost 20 times as much power as those 30 years ago.
Renewables are cheaper than fossil fuels
Renewable energy shows it is on at least equal footing (if not better) with fossil fuels prices, becoming for the first time having cheaper production costs across G20 energy markets.
A modern economy embraces the sun
For seven months in a row, Australia installed more than 100 megawatts of rooftop solar. Enough solar power was installed in March alone to power 36,700 homes.
Renewable energy is a major global employer
More than 10 million people now work in renewable energy, showing the sector can create jobs on a scale to match those lost in the fossil fuel sector.
Ouarzazate powers up
Morocco’s giant concentrated solar power plant plans to power over one million homes and reduce carbon emissions by 760,000 tonnes per year.
An economic powerhouse is driven to renewables
China continued its unstoppable renewable energy drive with plans to cut emissions, address air pollution, meet electricity demand.
European ambition grows
The European Union set itself an ambitious goal of being 32% powered by renewables by 2030 — a significant increase from its previous target of 27%.
Palau is powering like no other
Palau, a small island state in the Pacific, has begun work on what will be the largest micro-grid in the world, representing a bold step towards its renewable energy goals.
An icon of power brings new possibilities
Addressing the challenges for intermittent power from wind and solar, western US states consider adopting the iconic Hoover Dam as a pumped-storage facility.
Offshore wind goes from strength to strength
The Walney Extension offshore wind project opens in the Irish sea, with enough capacity to power 600,000 homes.
A Golden State dreams green
California, a US state with a USD 2.9 trillion economy, commits to 100% renewable energy future by 2045.
People without energy access falls below a billion
In less than two decades, electrification rates have skyrocketed across the world than South Asia and today, for the first time, less than one billion people live without electricity access.
An outback battery ends outages
Built in record time, the world’s largest lithium battery — Australia’s Hornsdale storage facility — stablises the South Australia’s grid and paves the way for more renewables.
Chile on the road to an EV future
Chile is setting an example for its regional neighbors, by embracing electric cars at a speed second only to China.
Investors urge power to quit coal
Investors overseeing more than USD 11 trillion of assets, urge power companies to end coal use by 2030 to help in the fight against climate change.
Original source: IRENA
Published on 1 January 2019
