Wind and solar on track to meet COP28 goals

COLORADO, July 14, 2023 – Wind and solar power generation projects are on track to account for more than one third of the world’s electricity production by 2030, according to a report that US sustainability research entity Rocky Mountain Institute published on Thursday.

The segment is expected to supply 33% of global electricity production by 2030, up from its current 12%, as more planned solar and wind facilities come on line.

By 2030, the two segments are expected to produce between 12,000 TWh and 14,000 TWh, which is around three to four times larger than production levels in 2022.

This is in line with targets set at COP28 to triple the capacity of renewables by 2030.

According to the study, the cost of solar power production will fall from around USD 40 per MWh to USD 20 per MWh by 2030 as the number of projects rise and economies of scale improve.

“The benefit of rapid renewable deployment is greater energy security and independence, plus long-term energy price deflation because this is a manufactured technology – the more you install the cheaper it gets,” said Kingsmill Bond, senior principal at Rocky Mountain Institute.

Additionally, demand for fossil fuels to produce electricity is expected to decline by 30% by 2030 from 2022 levels.

The study highlighted Uruguay, Denmark, Lithuania, Namibia, Netherlands, Palestine, Jordan and Chile as nations that have grown a significant renewables sector at faster rates than anticipated.

Rocky Mountain Institute is a non-profit organisation that carried out the research in conjunction with the USD 10-billion Bezos Earth Fund.

“The call to triple renewable electricity investment and capacity by 2030 are deliverable,” said Christiana Figueres, former executive secretary of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

“But only by removing barriers to faster renewable deployment, from streamlining permitting to redirecting subsidies for polluting energy.”

Read our latest insights on: