IRENA says world needs 1.1 TW of renewables per year

IRENA has released a new report describing the future actions that should be taken to reach the renewable energy targets set by the COP28 conference held in Dubai in December.

“We need to deploy around 1.1 TW of renewable energy capacity per year by 2030. Every technology that provides a reduction in CO2 emissions is good, but technology neutrality may not be the solution, as only renewables ensure the necessary speed and scale to achieve the proposed targets,” said IRENA President Francesco La Camera, in reference to the slow pace at which nuclear energy is currently driving the global energy transition.

According to the official documents, 123 national governments and supranational blocs, including the European Union, have signed up to triple the world’s installed renewable energy generation capacity to at least 11 TW by 2030. The signatories also vowed to double the global average annual rate of energy efficiency improvements, from 2% to 4%, until the end of 2030.

La Camera noted the importance of creating a workforce for the energy transition. He also discussed the need to create incentives to foster the emergence of a green hydrogen market and to develop grid infrastructure and interconnection sea cables for global energy trade.

In the Tracking COP28 Outcomes report, IRENA said that annual investments in renewable power generation must surge from $570 billion in 2023 to $1,550 billion on average between 2024 and 2030. The report also said that the proposed COP28  target will not be reached without urgent policy intervention.

“G20 nations, for example, must grow their renewable capacity from under 3 TW in 2022 to 9.4 TW by 2030, accounting for over 80% of the global total,” said IRENA.

The organization also said that wider international cooperation, as well as the strategic use of public finances, will be key to achieving the COP28 goals.

“This requires structural reforms, including within multilateral finance mechanisms, to effectively support the energy transition in developing countries,” it stated.