Developing countries moving to clean energy

May 22, 2015 | By Barbara Vergetis Lundin

Investment in, and deployment of, electricity infrastructure is shifting from the industrialized economies of the Northern Hemisphere to developing economies, and from fossil fuels to clean energy, according to the Pew Charitable Trusts.

Clean Energy Investment 2009 to 2013. Click on image to enlarge. Credit: The Pew Charitable Trusts

In fact, Pew's research finds that 100 nations outside of the Group of 20 and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development attracted a total of $62 billion in clean energy investment from 2009 to 2013, much of it in a relatively small number of countries. In fact, almost half (45 percent) of the total five-year investment, $27.9 billion, occurred in 10 markets, where clean energy capacity grew by 91 percent -- three times faster than any other supply option -- over the five years.

"Developing countries are prioritizing solar, wind, and other renewable energy sources in order to reduce energy poverty, power economic progress, enhance national security by reducing imports, and protect the environment," said Phyllis Cuttino, director of Pew's clean energy initiative.

The report identified the top 10 emerging markets, in descending order: Thailand; Bulgaria; Ukraine; Kenya; Peru; Taiwan, Province of China; Morocco; Vietnam; Pakistan; and the Philippines.

Solar technologies led all sectors in clean energy investment in the top 10 markets over the period, attracting $12 billion, or 43 percent, of total clean energy investments, according to Pew.

In Morocco, the $8.1 billion Climate Investment Funds (CIF) partnered with the African Development Bank and the World Bank Group to channel $435 million to the Noor concentrated solar power (CSP) plant, Morocco's first large-scale solar energy complex. CSP uses mirrors to reflect and concentrate the sun's rays to generate steam used to power electricity-generating turbines.

This facility is projected to supply more than 500 megawatts (MW) of power to benefit 1.1 million Moroccans by 2018, reducing carbon emissions by 760,000 tons per year. The low-cost debt financing provided by the investment partnership reduced project costs by about 25 percent compared to terms offered by commercial banks, cutting the cost of power production and slashing the Moroccan government's power subsidy from $60 million to $20 million per year.

The wind industry registered the second-greatest sum at $7.7 billion, 28 percent of total clean energy investment, Pew reports. All of the top 10 countries invested in wind power from 2009 to 2013, with Pakistan ($1.6 billion), Bulgaria ($1.4 billion), and Ukraine ($1.2 billion) accounting for the greatest investments. Small hydropower capacity grew by 649 MWs across seven countries, with Vietnam bringing in $1.2 billion of the nearly $2.1 billion invested in this sector. Led by Thailand, the 10 countries added 481 MW of biomass production. Kenya accounted for nearly all of the additional geothermal plants, according to Pew.

Geothermal power harnesses the earth's heat to generate electricity, offering a reliable energy source that is universally available, as it does not depend on a steady supply of sun or wind. Geothermal energy is one of the lowest-cost sources of renewable electricity, and can provide both "baseload" and backup power for other renewable energy sources. Though a recent study showed that private investors are increasingly taking the geothermal plunge, most investors are still reluctant to invest in the technology because of the perceived high risk of early-stage exploration, which includes drilling and development.

"This is one of several areas in which CIF investments can be game changing," said CIF Manager Mafalda Duarte. "We estimate that the CIF's concessional $746 million of financing, which leverages much more from other sources, in geothermal energy could add 2.9 gigawatts (GW) of geothermal power, equivalent to 25 percent of current global installed capacity, simply by reducing the risk to investors associated with geothermal exploration."

CIF funding is supporting some of the first large-scale geothermal development projects in Armenia, Chile, Dominica, Ethiopia, and Tanzania.

According to Pew, only five of the top 10 emerging markets added fossil fuel technologies, and just one built more nuclear power.

Pew predicts that developing countries will account for the majority of worldwide power capacity growth over the next 15 years and that renewables are likely to account for 54 percent of new global capacity.

"Emerging markets have the potential to be important export opportunities for clean energy technologies from the United States," said Cuttino. "With demand growing in coming years and decades, the United States should enhance its clean energy competitiveness and seize this new trade potential. Consistent policy prioritizing the innovation and deployment of renewables is essential."

For more:
- see this report

http://www.fierceenergy.com/story/developing-countries-moving-clean-energy/2015-05-22