Renewables 2019 Global Status Report
"Progress in renewables remains concentrated in the power sector, while far less growth has occurred in heating, cooling and transport. "
Authors
Ren21 Research Direction Team
Hannah E. Murdock
Duncan Gibb
Thomas André
Special advisors
Janet L. Sawin (Sunna Research)
Rana Adib (REN21)
Adam Brown
Hugo Lucas (Institute for Energy
Diversification and Saving, IDAE)
Data Advisor: Freyr Sverrisson (Sunna Research)
Chapter Authors
Fabiani Appavou
Adam Brown
Bärbel Epp (solrico)
Duncan Gibb (REN21)
Bozhil Kondev
Angus McCrone (BloombergNEF – BNEF)
Hannah E. Murdock (REN21)
Evan Musolino
Lea Ranalder (REN21)
Janet L. Sawin (Sunna Research)
Kristin Seyboth (KMS Research and Consulting)
Jonathan Skeen (SOLA Future Energy)
Freyr Sverrisson (Sunna Research)
This report was commissioned by REN21 and produced in collaboration with a global network of research partners. Financing was provided by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi) and UN Environment. A large share of the research for this report was conducted on a voluntary basis.
Extract from the Executive Summary
« The year 2018 saw a relatively stable market for renewable energy technologies. A total of 181 gigawatts (GW) of renewable power was added, a consistent pace compared to 2017, and the number of countries integrating high shares of variable renewable energy (VRE) keeps rising. Progress once again was concentrated in the power sector, as renewable energy became increasingly cost-competitive compared to conventional thermal generation. Renewables provided an estimated more than 26% of global electricity generation by year’s end. Uptake has been driven by targets and stable policies. As in previous years, renewables saw far less growth in the heating, cooling and transport sectors, with progress constrained by a lack of strong policy support and by slow developments in new technologies.
Decarbonisation pathways and frameworks were developed further during 2018. At the sub-national level, a growing number of governments in many regions became leaders, setting more ambitious targets than their national counterparts. Developing and emerging economies continued to increase their deployment of renewables, and distributed renewable energy systems further helped to spread energy access to households in remote areas. »