Renewable Energy by countries
Renewable Energy by Countries
This infographic shows how different countries are progressing in terms of Renewable Energy. Over the last decade, renewable energy technologies have grown exponentially, in particular wind and solar.
Countries like China and US, that had initially shown reluctance to dictates of the Kyoto Protocol, are now accelerating towards more energy acquisition through renewables. There are two factors that have expedited the push towards renewables in the big two economies (US and China). First is the cost of renewables, that has dropped substantially over the last decade. The cost is now comparable to the cost from traditional sources. The second factor is energy security. It should be noted that the energy provided by Renewables is indigenous and therefore do not require import of fuel from further afield.
Even with the current trends which favour more sustainable forms of energy, the world only gets 3.5% of its energy from renewables (excluding Hydro power). A major chunk of the world energy comes from Oil and Gas. Renewable Energy will tend to grow as the oil gets scarce and countries become more conscious of their CO2 emissions.
China has made leaps and bound progress in Renewables. It has eclipsed USA in the last 3 years in terms of renewable energy capacity. China boasts the biggest Wind farm in the world (22 GW) as well as the biggest hydropower project (also 22 GW). From 2014 onward, it has seen reduction in Carbon di oxide emissions rather than year on year increase. With more Renewable projects coming online, China is set to increase its renewable portion in its energy mix. Only last year (2015), China increased its Renewable energy capacity by 50%. Other than China, Denmark, Scotland and Germany have also made significant progress towards renewable energy.
Denmark has continuously upgraded its wind power over the last decade. It has very successfully introduced community ownership schemes for its wind turbines. Scotland that has a rich history of coal mining has successfully transitioned to a 100% coal free country. There are many times during the year when Scotland produces almost all of its energy from Renewable.
Germany similarly has shown leadership through its Energiewende policy. It has in shown the world how to successfully integrate and expand Renewables in their energy mix.
