THE POWER OF NEW ENERGY: UN REPORT

Mohamed El Ashry, UN authority on New Energy: “…the $100 billion of global investment in the sector during 2006 is a vote of confidence by investors.”

Virginia Sonntag-O'Brien, UN authority on New Energy: "In terms of options to mitigate carbon emissions, renewable energy is here now, unlike other options. There is no such thing as 'clean coal' today, and it is likely to be more than a decade before any advanced technology to capture and store carbon can be widely deployed…"

New UN Report points to power of renewable energy to mitigate carbon emissions
8 December 2007 (UN News Service)
and
Renewables offer major opportunities for climate change mitigation
29 November 2007 (Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century)
and
Mainstream Renewable Energy Continues Double-digit Growth
December 9, 2007 (Environmental News Network)

WHO
Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century (REN21) (Mohamed El Ashry, head); Worldwatch Institute; United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) (Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary General/UNEP Executive Director

From the REN21 2007 Report. (click to enlarge)

WHAT
REN21’s Renewables Global Status Report 2007, a report to the UNEP done in conjunction with Worldwatch Institute, found New Energy to make up 240 Gigawatts (GW) of the world’s 4,300 GW of annual energy consumption. It details “double-digit growth” in Wind (25-30%), Solar PV (50-60%), Solar Thermal (15-20%) and Biofuels (15-20%).

WHEN
- The 2007 report details energy consumption for 2006 and follows 2006 and 2005 reports.
- The report describes expected trends and developments through 2050.

WHERE
- 50+ countries have targets for increasing New Energy (13 developing countries, all EU countries, many US and Canadian states/provinces).
- 44 countries/states/provinces have a Renewable Electricity Standard (RES) requiring a percent of future electricity to come from renewables.
- 56+ countries have some type of New Energy promotion policy.

WHY
- The world’s consumption of New Energy is estimated to save 5 gigatonnes per year (Gt/year) of emissions.
- Wind, the biggest of the New Energies, reached 90+ GW cumulative capacity in 2007. Solar Photovoltaic energy delivered 8 GW to the grid. Solar hot water systems now provide hot water to more than 50 million households. 25 million rural households use energy from biogas, small wind power, household solar power, and other technologies.
- The report sees current trends continuing, New Energy costs declining, and technology and production diversifying and spreading to more countries (including emerging economies).
- The report sees important rural development benefits in New Energy.
- It describes economic development, energy security, local environmental benefits, and climate change mitigation from New Energy.

From the REN21 2007 Report. (click to enlarge)

QUOTES
- Ashry, REN21: "What's needed now are binding targets in an international agreement to establish polices that can rapidly accelerate the large-scale deployment of renewable energy to replace fossil fuels… With more than 70 countries installing wind power and biomass power generation expanding in more than 40 countries, renewable energy is clearly a global sector…growth is being driven by policies to promote renewable energy, which have mushroomed over the past few years…"
- Steiner, UNEP: "Renewable energy can make a significant contribution to de-carbonizing the global economy and its contribution to combating climate change is now really beginning to emerge…I call on governments to send market signals that will accelerate the use of renewable energy even further and to also reverse the declines in research and development spending so as to accelerate the commercialization of other renewables waiting in the wings…"