Renewables grew at fastest rate in two decades last year, IEA says in new report

• Renewable power generation grew at the fastest rate in two decades last year, and that growth is set to continue in the aftermath of the pandemic, according to a new report from the International Energy Agency.
• IEA said policy decisions in China and the U.S., among other things, fueled the growth, counteracting the impact of supply chain disruptions from the coronavirus.
• Renewable electricity added last year jumped 45% to 280 gigawatts (GW), marking the largest year-over-year increase since 1999.
• The Paris-based agency envisions this rate of growth becoming the “new normal.” IEA sees 270 GW added in 2021, followed by 280 GW in 2022. These estimates are 25% higher than the agency’s prior forecasts established last November.
• “Wind and solar power are giving us more reasons to be optimistic about our climate goals as they break record after record,” said Fatih Birol, IEA’s executive director. “Last year, the increase in renewable capacity accounted for 90% of the entire global power sector’s expansion.
• In its annual World Energy Outlook report released in November, IEA said solar is poised to become the new king of electricity as falling prices make solar cheaper than new coal and gas-fired plants.

(Source: CNBC News)