Thanks to new solar energy, the world has increased renewable energy by 2023, which could help the Earth move away from fossil fuels and prevent global warming and its consequences.
Today, clean energy is often very expensive, which explains some developments. According to the International Energy Agency, governments have also adopted policies to support renewable energy, some citing energy security concerns. These factors have offset high interest rates and ongoing difficulties in obtaining materials and components in many countries.
The IEA estimates that more than 440 gigawatts of renewable energy will be added by 2023.
Here's to the year of solar, wind and batteries.
Another record year for the sun
According to the World Renewable Energy Agency, China, Europe and the United States are setting annual records for solar installations.
China's additions dwarf the additions of all other countries, between 180 and 230 gigawatts, depending on the status of the projects at the end of the year. Europe added 58 gigawatts.
Solar energy is currently the cheapest form of electricity in most countries. From December 2022 to November 2023, solar panel prices in Europe fell by 40-53% and are now at historic lows.
"Especially in Europe, deals have been happening at an incredible pace," said Michael Taylor, senior analyst at IRENA.
When the final numbers are in for 2023, solar power is expected to surpass hydropower globally, but in terms of actual electricity, hydropower can produce power 24 hours a day, making it the cleanest source of energy.
In the United States, California continues to have the most solar, followed by Texas, Florida, North Carolina and Arizona.
Daniel Bressett, president of the Institute for Environmental and Energy Research, a nonprofit educational and policy organization, said state and federal incentives have had a major impact on the growth of solar power in the United States.
Despite the success of solar energy in 2023, there are obstacles. According to Bresset there is a shortage of transformers, but interest rates have increased.
Solar energy production has also increased in the United States. "We've seen the impact of the inflation bill in terms of investment ... more than 60 solar plants went public last year," said Abigail Ross Hopper, president and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association.
The challenges of wind energy
By the end of 2023, the world will add enough wind power to power nearly 80 million homes, making it a record year.
According to a Wood Mackenzie study, most of the growth in solar power, more than 58 gigawatts, has occurred in China. If all planned projects come to fruition, China is on track to surpass 1,200 gigawatts of solar and wind capacity five years ago by 2030, according to Global Energy Monitor.
China is one of several growing markets this year, the World Wind Energy Council said. Accelerated licensing and other reforms in key markets such as Germany and India have helped wind power grow. Wood Mackenzie said installations in Europe fell 6% year-on-year.
Short-term challenges such as high inflation, rising interest rates and rising construction material prices have forced some offshore wind producers to renegotiate or even cancel project contracts and postpone some onshore wind projects until 2024 or 2025.
It's a challenging time for the nascent US offshore wind industry, which is looking to launch the country's first commercial-scale wind farms. The construction of two of them started this year. Both aim for early 2024, by which time one of the plants will already be supplying electricity to the US grid. Large offshore wind farms have been generating electricity in Europe and, more recently, Asia for three decades.
After years of record growth, industry group American Clean Power hopes to add enough onshore wind to power 2.7 to 3 million U.S. homes by the end of the year. The group said developers are taking advantage of new tax credits passed as part of last year's anti-inflation law, but it will take years to bring projects online. Since the IRA took effect, $383 billion in clean energy investments have been announced.
“We're talking about 2023, which is essentially an underperforming year, but a total of 8-9 gigawatts will still be very exciting. This is a huge amount of new clean energy being added to the grid,” said John Hensley, vice president of research and analytics at ACP.
Globally, wind power construction is also slow this year. This year the top three markets remain China, the United States and Germany for onshore wind, and China, the United Kingdom and Germany for offshore.
Analysts expect the global industry to grow further next year, with around 12% more wind power installed worldwide.
In June, the industry noted that it had surpassed one terawatt of installed wind power worldwide. It took more than 40 years to get there, but at the rate the industry is creating now, the second terawatt could take less than seven years.
A big year for batteries
In a bid to make transport less climate-friendly, the trend towards electric vehicles will accelerate globally by 2023, with one in five cars sold this year expected to be electric, according to the International Energy Agency. That meant another great year for batteries.
According to Atlassian Public Policy, more than $43.4 billion was spent on battery manufacturing and recycling in the United States this year thanks to inflation-adjusted legislation. This puts the US on par with Europe, but still behind China in terms of battery power.
As for giant battery factories, the US and Europe had 38 in operation by the end of November, according to Benchmark Mining Intelligence. But China had 295 in the pipeline.
Experts say the industry continues to explore different ways to produce batteries without relying on harmful materials, making components more durable and developing the battery recycling industry.
Senior benchmark analyst Evan Hartley said prices of key battery raw materials, including lithium, also fell sharply.
"Battery prices are now such that most Americans can afford an electric car," said Paul Brown, a professor of materials science and engineering at the University of Illinois.
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