Wind and solar accounted for a record 12 percent of global power generation last year, according to a new analysis which finds that the rapid buildout of clean energy heralds “a new era of falling fossil generation.”
Wind and solar accounted for a record 12 percent of global power generation last year, according to a new analysis which finds that the rapid buildout of clean energy heralds “a new era of falling fossil generation.”
Wind energy added globally last year could nearly meet the power needs of the UK, while newly installed solar energy could meet the power demand of South Africa, according to the report from Ember, a UK-based clean energy think tank. Together, renewables and nuclear power accounted for 39 percent of global power generation last year, an all-time high.
At the same time, the report said, “Russia’s invasion of Ukraine triggered record high gas prices that have forever changed the perception of gas as secure, abundant and cheap.” Coal use grew slightly in Europe last year after Russia cut shipments of natural gas. Globally, coal power rose by a little more than 1 percent, while gas power fell slightly.
Read more at: Yale Environment 360
