North America leading in global renewable power generation

May 28, 2014 | By Barbara Vergetis Lundin

According to GlobalData, North America is the global leader in renewable power generation. Support from federal and state governments has driven the momentum of the United States and Canada, and states and provinces with strong policy frameworks have led installed capacity, the research concludes.

In the U.S., the growth of the renewable energy industry has been led by the state-level Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS), combined with other tax incentives and subsidies. California and Texas, which have been providing policy support to the renewable energy industry for more than a decade, are the leaders in renewable capacity in the United States, according to GlobalData.

The Canadian government is supporting renewable energy with its ecoENERGY program, and Ontario -- the leading province in terms of renewable power capacity -- is supporting renewable energy with its comprehensive Feed-in Tariff (FIT) program, GlobalData found.

Canada is a leading country in terms of the use of renewable energy resources for electricity generation and heating. In 2013, renewable energy, including small hydropower, accounted for 8.9 percent of its electricity generation; wind power is the most prominent source of renewable energy, generating around 39 percent of Canada's renewable total, including hydropower, in 2013, GlobalData reports.

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