IAEA: World increased renewable energy capacity by 50%

The International Energy Agency (IEA) reported that in 2023 the world increased its capacity for renewable energy by 50% compared to the previous year, predicting rapid growth in the next 5 years, reported AFP.
The UN-led COP28 summit ended in Dubai last month, with nearly 200 countries agreeing to a first-ever call for the world to divest from fossil fuels.
"The amount of renewable energy capacity added to the world's energy systems has grown by 50% in 2023, reaching almost 510 gigawatts, with 3/4 of the added energy resources globally coming from photovoltaic systems," said a statement by the energy regulator.
The report said the biggest growth was in China, which in 2023 had commissioned as many PV installations as the world in 2022, and China's wind power grew by 66% year-on-year.
"Renewable capacity additions in Europe, the US and Brazil also hit record highs," the sector report said.
IEA chief Fatih Birol said this report shows that "under current policies and market conditions, global renewable energy capacity is already on track to increase two and a half times by 2030."
"This is still not enough to meet the COP28 target of tripling renewables, but we are getting closer and governments have the tools to close the gap," he added.
Birol said that onshore wind and solar power plants are now cheaper than new fossil fuel plants, as well as existing fossil fuel plants in most countries.
"The most important challenge for the international community is to rapidly increase the financing and deployment of renewable energy sources in most emerging and developing economies," he said.
"Success in achieving the goal of tripling consumption will depend on this," Birol added. /BGNES