More 2018 Money Went To New Energy Than Old Energy

Renewable energy investment in 2018 hit USD 288.9 billion, far exceeding fossil fuel investment; Global investment 11 per cent down compared to 2017, driven in part by falling solar costs

18 June 2019 (United Nations Environment Program)

“Global investment in renewable energy hit USD 288.9 billion in 2018, with the amount spent on new capacity far exceeding the financial backing for new fossil fuel power, according to…REN21’s Renewables 2019 Global Status Report. The numbers show that while investment was 11 per cent down over the previous year, 2018 was the ninth successive year in which it exceeded USD 200 billion and the fifth successive year above USD 250 billion…The dip in investment in 2018 can be partly attributed to falling technology costs in solar photovoltaics, which meant that the required capacity could be secured at a lower cost…[There was] a slowdown in solar power deployment in China…[but] globally, solar was still the largest focus of investment, with USD 139.7 billion in 2018, down 22 per cent. Wind power investment increased two per cent in 2018, to USD 134.1 billion. The other sectors lagged far behind, although investment in biomass and waste-to-energy increased 54 per cent, to USD 8.7 billion…[Investment in new renewable power capacity] was USD 272.3 billion globally in 2018 (excluding large hydro)…[Investment in new coal- and gas-fired generating capacity] was USD 95 billion…

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China led investment worldwide for the seventh successive year, at USD 91.2 billion…[but] this was down 37 per cent from 2017’s record number, due to a number of factors including a mid-year change in the government’s feed-in tariff policy, which hit investment in solar power…China also accounted for 32 per cent of the global total investment, followed by Europe at 21 per cent, the United States at 17 per cent, and Asia-Oceania (excluding China and India) at 15 per cent. Smaller shares were seen in India at 5 per cent, the Middle East and Africa at 5 per cent, the Americas (excluding Brazil and the United States) at 3 per cent and Brazil at 1 per cent…If China is excluded, renewable energy investment in the developing world actually increased 6 per cent to USD 61.6 billion, a record high…” click here for more

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