A new report issued by RMI claims that fully one third of all the electricity the world needs will come from renewables by 2030 compared to 12% today.
Solar, wind and batteries have been following a typical path for new technology, the report says. Learning curves lead to falling prices, which in turn lead to accelerated growth in new capacity. New solar and battery capacity, policy targets and the momentum of change all point to continued exponential growth in solar and wind generation until the end of this decade at 15% – 20% a year. The report also claims that the cost of solar power, the cheapest energy source in history, will fall by 50% by the end of this decade.
The study finds that Europe and China are leading the way in rapidly adopting clean energy technology. Although, the deployment of renewable energy is becoming more evenly distributed globally, including across the Middle East and Africa, which are rapidly catching up and harnessing the global growth trend. It is important to understand that many parts of Africa are not served by a traditional grid, which means they can transition directly to solar power and local microgrids without the expense of planning and constructing traditional grids.
Exponential rates of deployment are driving down the prices of renewables at unprecedented pace, making higher cost hydrocarbons uncompetitive in most markets. It predicts that the cost of solar power could be cut in half – from $40/MWh to $20/MWh – between now and 2030. The cost of solar and battery have declined 80% since 2012, while offshore wind costs have declined 73% and onshore wind costs have declined by 57%, according to data from BNEF.
www.cleantechnica.com/2023/07/14/one-third-of-all-electricity-will-come-from-renewables-by-2030/