1.
Amazing Renewable Energy Facts
● Renewables generate 22.1% of global electricity and are responsible for 19% of final energy
consumption around the world. .1
● 1GW of solar takes on average 1 year to permit and build, compared to 13 years for 1 GW of
nuclear. 2
● The US solar industry now employs more people than the country’s coal and natural gas
industries combined.3
● Despite Australia’s history as a coal­fired economy, the nation’s solar industry employs a “far larger”
amount of people than its fossil­fuelled power stations.4
● It is both technically and financially feasible to achieve 100% renewable energy this century.
The technical potential for renewable energy is far greater than current human energy use,
and studies suggest it could supply almost 100% of global energy demand by 2050. (WWF, The
Energy Report
http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/footprint/climate_carbon_energy/energy_solutions22/re
newable_energy/sustainable_energy_report/)
● Solar power is projected to grow so much that the International energy Agency predicts that
solar will provide the world with the majority of its electricity needs in a few decades.5
● The manufacturing costs of solar have dropped from around 60 USD a watt in the 1970s to
1.50 USD today.6
● IRENA estimates that renewable energy jobs reached 6.5million in 2013. In decreasing order,
the largest employers were China, Brazil, the United States, India, Germany, Spain and
Bangladesh.7
1
http://newclimateeconomy.report/energy/
2
http://c1cleantechnicacom.wpengine.netdna­cdn.com/files/2011/08/solar­less­expensive­nuclear.png
3
http://www.greenbiz.com/blog/2014/01/31/us­solar­industry­employs­more­coal­gas­industries­combined
4
http://reneweconomy.com.au/2014/solar­industry­provides­far­more­jobs­in­australia­than­coal­69251
5
http://cleantechnica.com/2011/08/29/solar­power­could­produce­50­of­global­electricity­iea­report­concludes
/
6
http://cleantechnica.com/2011/06/10/solar­power­graphs­to­make­you­smile/
7
http://www.irena.org/publications/rejobs­annual­review­2014.pdf

2.
Source: IRENA http://www.irena.org/publications/rejobs-annual-review-2014.pdf
Countries that already have a huge share of RE in their electricity production and some cool targets
(data from REN 21 Global Status Report. 2014
http://www.ren21.net/Portals/0/documents/Resources/GSR/2014/GSR2014_full%20report_low%
20res.pdf​p. 119):
● Belize: 94 % in 2012, 63% excluding large hydro.
● Croatia produced almost 50% of its electricity through RE in 2012.
● Chile produced almost 40% of its electricity from RE in 2012.
● Costa Rica produced 92% of its electricity from RE in 2012 and aims at 100% by 2021.
● Fiji produced 67% of its power with RE in 2012 and aims for 100% RE by 2030
● Gabon generated 40% of its power from RE in 2012 and aims at 70% in 2020.
● Germany generated 25% of its power from RE in 2013 and aims at 80% by 2050.
● Madagascar aims for 75% of its power coming from RE in 2020.
● New Zealand aims at 90% of its electricity to come from RE by 2025 and already generated
72% from RE in 2012.
● Nicaragua is aiming for 90% RE in the power sector by 2020.
● Tuvalu aims at 100% RE by 2020 in the power sector.
● Uganda generated almost 80% of its electricity from RE in 2012 and Uruguay 60%.
● Albania, Iceland and Lesotho all generated 100% of their electricity from RE in 2012.
● Guatemala has a target of 85 % RE in final energy demand by 2026

3.
● Global wind power capacity was just 17 GW at the turn of the millenium, by 2005 this had
risen to 59GW, in less than 10 years this increased by a factor of 5 to more than 318GW, and
the sector continues to grow exponentially.8
● The largest wind farm farm is the Alta Wind Energy Centre in California, USA. It will soon
generate more than 3 (average) coal fired power stations.9
● The Prefecture of Fukushima, that experienced the worst nuclear accident in history, is not
only aiming at powering itself entirely through renewable energy by 2040 but is also planning
to build the world’s largest offshore wind farm and largest solar farm in Japan.
http://cleantechnica.com/2014/02/06/fukushima-100-renewable-energy/
Solar
The conservative International Energy Agency argues that solar power will likely become the worlds
largest power source by 2050.10
There are now more than ​one million home solar power systems​installed in Australia11
The largest solar electric generating system in the world at present occupies previously unused land in
the Mojave Desert, USA. The 377MW, 3,500 acre solar plant was completed in 2013 and provides
140,000 California homes with electricity every day. ​Plant construction and maintenance created
2,100 jobs and will has generated about $650 million in employee wages and earnings .12
Solar energy is even working at night on a commercial scale thanks to new technology that allows13
for hours and hours of heat storage. The Gemasolar tower plant in Sevilla, Spain uses molten salt to
store energy for up to 15 hours and provide power through the night. In 2013, renewable energy
provided 42% of Spain's power demand .14
8
http://www.gwec.net/wp­content/uploads/2014/04/6_21­2_global­cumulative­installed­wind­capacity­1996­20
13.jpg
9
http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_energy/coalvswind/c01.html#.VHSQw2SUd5w
10
http://www.iea.org/newsroomandevents/pressreleases/2014/september/how­solar­energy­could­be­the­large
st­source­of­electricity­by­mid­century.html
11
http://www.energymatters.com.au/education/solar­wind­trivia/
12
http://www.treehugger.com/slideshows/renewable­energy/see­worlds­largest­thermal­solar­plant­370mw­un
der­construction­mojave­desert/
13
http://phys.org/news/2011­07­gemasolar­solar­thermal­power­hours.html
14
http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/campaigns/climate­change/energyrevolution/renewable­energy­
myths/

4.
Locating the transition - countries
● Germany now gets a quarter of its energy from renewable sources and is on track to achieve
80% by mid century.
● Denmark will invest $960 million to go 100% renewable by 2050 and thanks to the cost
savings on fuel costs Denmark is expecting to make this money back and actually achieve a net
financial gain.
● In 2013 China accounted for 21% of all global renewable investment, adding more than five
times more wind and nearly twice as much solar as any other country.
● India is committed to rapidly scaling up their solar capacity 5 fold from 20GW to 100GW by
2022.
● The Pacific Island nation of Tuvalu has committed to be powered by 100% clean energy by
2020.
● Around 50 cities including Sydney, Munich and San Francisco are going 100% renewable.
● Just a few years ago, Nicaragua depended almost entirely on imported fuel oil to
generate electricity even though it lacked thermal plants to do so efficiently on
anything close to a large scale. Rolling blackouts and a hefty import bill from
Venezuelan oil spurred the country to aggressively pursue renewable energy
development. And the results have been remarkable. ​From 2006­12, the country
attracted $1.5 billion in renewable investments​, including over $400 million from
U.S.­based Ram Power in the Polaris geothermal plant. Now renewables account for
50% of the country’s electricity, and government officials predict it will rise to 80%
within a few years. Of its current mix, geothermal provides 16%, wind provides 15%,
hydropower provides 12%, and biomass provides 7%. 15
● Costa Rica reported that it managed to power itself already entirely through RE for 75
consecutive days. 16
Locating the transition - businesses
15
http://blogs.blouinnews.com/blouinbeatbusiness/2015/03/26/forget­the­canal­nicaraguas­renewable­energy­r
evolution/
16
http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1097457_what­country­powered­itself­entirely­on­renewable­energy­f
or­75­days

5.
Major businesses are helping to drive the clean energy transition by signalling their commitment and
support for 100% renewable energy. IKEA, Swiss Re, BT, Formula E, H&M, KPN, Mars, Nestlé, Philips,
Reed Elsevier, J. Safra Sarasin and Yoox are just some of the major organisations that are going to
make sure their operations are powered by 100% renewable energy. Household names like Apple,
Google, Facebook and Amazon have also pledged that their data centres will be powered by 100%
clean, renewable energy.
Locating the transition - communities
Communities in fossil fuel and nuclear reliant countries are challenging the national status quo and
going 100% renewable. For example, the town of Kisielice in northern Poland, a coal dominated
region, has totally phased out its use of fossil fuels in favour of clean renewables.
Another example is Perpignan Méditerranée in France, it is aiming to become the first urban territory
in Europe to meet all its electricity needs by means of local renewable projects - 75% of the region’s
electricity needs are already met by renewable energy thanks to these local efforts.
The transition is creating employment
An estimated 6.5 million direct or indirect jobs around the world are created by renewable energy
industry. This includes 2.6 million in China, 894,000 in Brazil, 625,000 in the USA, 391,000 in India and
371,000 in Germany. The solar PV industry alone generates over 2.2 million jobs for communities
across the globe and wind power is responsible for employing over 800,000 people .17
Estimates show that global wind power employment could increase to as much as 2.1 million in 2030
and 2.8 million in 2050. Similar projections estimate that worldwide solar PV production alone could
create as many as 6.3 million jobs by 2030.
The IPCC says investments in renewable energy could provide 155,000 direct and 115,000 indirect
jobs in the Middle East and North Africa by 2050. The World Bank predicts that renewable energy
could account for over 50,000 jobs in Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, and Morocco by 2025 in solar component
manufacturing alone.
In more and more places around the world the renewable energy industry is out-stripping dirty
energy industries when it comes to job creation. In the USA for instance, it is estimated that there are
more solar-workers than coal-workers .18
The transition is bringing people out of energy poverty
17
Ren21 global status report 2014
18
http://money.cnn.com/2013/04/22/news/economy/solar­jobs/index.html

6.
Almost 3 billion people suffer from both, erratic or no access to electricity and reliance on
inefficient and polluting solid biomass fuels for cooking. There are many examples that demonstrate
how decentralised renewable energy can play a critical role to connect these people and their
communities with clean, safe sources of electricity and power.
Morocco has put in place consistent policy support, including favourable financing options and
regulatory frameworks, to support the deployment of renewable energy solutions. The impact has
been particularly great in rural areas, where the electrification rate increased from 18% to 98%
between 1995 and 2012.
In Bangladesh Government has established a goal of increasing electricity access in rural Bangladesh
to 100%, this goal is being implemented almost exclusively with the use of solar home systems due to
its economic advantages.
A recent IEA scenario for universal energy access by 2030 assumes 56% of the investment would go to
“mini-grids” and off-grid solutions, with up to 90% using renewable energy sources.19
The transition is improving public health
Switching to clean renewable energy sources helps to protect people from the negative health
impacts associated with fossil fuel pollution.
The World Health Organization has estimated that air pollution was responsible for around 7 million
deaths worldwide in 2012 . In Europe alone coal power plants are causing ill-health in Europeans20
worth €43 billion each year by contributing to higher rates of respiratory and cardiovascular disease,
among other killer diseases .21
Research suggests that phasing out dirty fossil fuels and switching to clean, renewable energy sources
could prevent 1.3 million early deaths every year, by 2050 .22
The future of the transition is bright
19
http://newclimateeconomy.report/energy/
20
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2014/air­pollution/en/
21
http://www.env­health.org/IMG/pdf/heal_report_the_unpaid_health_bill_­_how_coal_power_plants_make_us
_sick_finalpdf.pdf
22
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn24246­green­energy­pays­for­itself­in­lives­saved­from­smog.html#.V
HWn42SUd5w

7.
The conservative IEA envisions solar and wind sources adding more electricity production than either
coal or gas through to 2035 and by 2040 they expect renewable energy to be responsible for
one-third of global power generation.
The IEA says that through to 2040 wind power accounts for the largest share of growth in
renewables-based generation (34%), followed by hydropower (30%) and solar technologies (18%).23
Other scenarios see renewables scaling-up even faster. For example, the International Renewable
Energy Agency (IRENA) identifies potential that would give 60% more generation from renewables
than is realised in the IEA scenario, and would result in 44% share of renewables in electricity
production by 2030.
PwC says Europe and North Africa could run on 100% renewable energy by 2050. Studies suggest
renewable energy could supply 95% of global energy demand by 2050, which makes a shot at 100%
within this century technically and financially feasible.
Government’s support the transition (but could do more)
There are policies to support the phase-out of fossil fuels and the uptake of renewable energy spread
throughout the world - 144 countries had renewable energy targets at the end of 2013. This is a
positive sign, but more governments need to be supporting the switch to 100% renewables.
Denmark is the first OECD country that has committed to achieving 100% renewable energy in
electricity and heat by 2030 and to be totally fossil-free by 2050 - this includes the transport sector.
Scotland has established a target to supply 100% of the nation’s electricity demand from renewable
sources by 2020.
The clean energy transition isn’t just for rich, industrialised countries. The governments of Cape Verde
in Africa, Costa Rica in Latin America, Tuvalu and Tokelau in the South Pacific and the island of Sumba
in Indonesia are all committed to 100% renewable energy.
Investment in the transition is big (but could be bigger)
In 2013 China invested the most and installed the most renewable energy capacity, followed closely
by the USA and Japan. In terms of investment in renewable energy by share of GDP we get a very
different set of champions - Uruguay comes out on top, closely followed by Mauritius and Costa Rica.
23
http://www.iea.org/Textbase/npsum/WEO2014SUM.pdf

8.
New investment in clean energy rose rapidly from $60 billion in 2004 to $317 billion in 2011.
However, over the last few years investment has slowed somewhat to $251 billion in 2013 .24
Fossil-fuel subsidies totalled $550 billion in 2013 and experts say they are holding back investment in
renewables.
Latin America could accelerate clean energy investment and the roll out of renewables in the region
by cutting subsidies for the fossil fuel industry - which can be worth more than 5% of GDP in countries
such as Ecuador and Venezuela. If this switch was made, the Inter-American Development Bank states
the region could produce 22 times the renewable energy it needs.
Renewables are increasingly cost competitive
Governments and investors take note - rapid cost reductions have allowed global renewable energy to
expand, even as investments slowed down. The cost of providing electricity from wind and solar
power plants has plummeted over the last five years, so much so that in some markets renewable
generation is now cheaper than coal or natural gas.
Since 1990 the cost of wind energy has halved. In places as diverse as Australia, Brazil, Mexico, South
Africa, Turkey, and several US states, the cost of electricity production from onshore wind power now
is on par with or lower than fossil fuel alternatives.
In Brazil, wind power has been the cheapest source of new power in recent auctions for new
electricity contracts. South Africa similarly has seen wind power procured at costs as much as 30%
below those of new coal-fired power.25
According to a study by the investment banking firm Lazard, the cost of utility-scale solar energy in the
USA is as low as 5.6 cents a kilowatt-hour, and wind is as low as 1.4 cents. In comparison, natural gas
comes at 6.1 cents a kilowatt-hour on the low end and coal at 6.6 cents. Even without subsidies, the
firm’s analysis shows that wind energy is as cheap as 3.7 cents per kilowatt-hour.
The most competitive onshore wind power sites can deliver electricity costs at as little as USD $0.04
per kilowatt-hour, making wind power the cheapest electricity option in many places .26
Solar PV power is now half the cost it was just in 2010, as module prices have fallen 80% since 2008.
At least 53 solar PV plants over 50 MW were operating by early 2014, in at least 13 countries, and
several planned projects are now considered competitive without subsidies.
24
http://about.bnef.com/presentations/clean­energy­investment­q3­2014­fact­pack/content/uploads/sites/4/201
4/10/Clean­energy­investment­%E2%80%93­Q3­2014­fact­pack.pdf
25
http://newclimateeconomy.report/energy/
26
http://www.irena.org/DocumentDownloads/Publications/Renewable_Power_Generation_Costs.pdf

9.
Rooftop solar for homes is also competitive with retail electricity prices in several countries, including
Australia, Brazil, Denmark, Germany and Italy. Even at high financing rates, solar PV is now cheaper
than diesel generators, often the main alternative in rural areas in developing countries where grid
connections are unavailable or cost-prohibitive.27
The renewables sector is incredibly innovative
There are numerous examples to demonstrate that the renewable energy sector is constantly
innovating in order to boost efficiency, drive down costs and increase the benefits of clean
technologies. Here are some examples:
André Broessel’s orb-like system is supposedly 35% more efficient than a standard panel, doing even
better when combined with a tool for tracking the sun.
The IBM “sunflower” is set to launch in 2017. It will not only provide electricity – it will also desalinate
water for sanitation and drinking. A group of several solar generators could provide enough fresh
water for an entire town.
27
http://newclimateeconomy.report/energy/

10.
A new solar plug-and-play installation process using glue to attach modules could reduce the time and
costs of rooftop solar installation from days to hours . ​The permitting is handled by a combination of28
electronic sensors and software that communicates with local jurisdictions and utilities. Ultimately,
the installers claim, it could reduces consumer costs from $22,000 to as little as $7,500.
End
Notes
Detailed modelling for the United States as a whole showed how an electricity system with 80%
renewables would be feasible with technologies that are commercially available today.29
IEA world energy outlook: The share of renewables in power generation increases most in OECD
countries, reaching 37%, and their growth is equivalent to the entire net increase in OECD electricity
supply. However, generation from renewables grows more than twice as much in non-OECD
countries, led by China, India, Latin America and Africa.
Iceland's power supply​went from 75% imported coal to more than 80% local geothermal and hydro in
30 years.
A global move towards 100% renewable energy is vital for addressing the twin problems of depleting
conventional fossil fuel reserves and climate change as well as associated problems such as urban air
pollution. 100% renewable is feasible and likely for practically all countries by 2100. With enough
political will and concerted efforts, this can be achieved as early as 2050. Modified quote ​Professor
S.C. Bhattacharya (India)
28
http://www.fraunhofer.org/
29
http://newclimateeconomy.report/energy/

11.
Renewables accounted for 56% of new installed power capacity in 2013.
Offshore wind power increased by 1.6GW in 2013.
For context - 3.5 GW, ​Plant Bowen in Georgia​, the largest coal power plant in the U.S., can provide
electricity to about 1.9 million homes.
The ​worlds largest wind turbine​is manufactured by Vestas and generates 8MW of clean electricity,
enough to power 7,500 homes every year.
The 5 countries with the most wind power relative to population size are: Denmark, Spain, Portugal,
Sweden and Germany. The 5 countries with the most wind power relative to national​​wealth (GDP)
are: Portugal, Spain, Denmark, Cape Verde, Romania30
The ​largest concentrating solar power plant​(100 MW) in operation is currently in Abu Dhabi, but it
won't stay at the top of the list for too long. ​Brightsource Energy​is putting the finishing touches on its
massive​Ivanpah concentrating solar power (CSP) plant in the Mojave desert, and if all goes well, the
switch should be flipped this year. Ivanpah will have a capacity of 377 megawatts, or about enough31
energy to power 140,000 houses. It took more than 5 years to plan it, get permits, finance it, and build
it. created 2,100 jobs for construction workers and support staff and will have generated about $650
million in employee wages and earnings.
The Jasper solar farm, located near Kimberley in South Africa, is now the continent's largest solar
power project. Construction was completed in October, and it is now fully operational (you can read
that in the ​Star Wars emperor's voice​). With a rated capacity of 96 megawatts, Jasper will produce
about 180,000 megawatt-hours of clean energy annually for South African residents, enough to power
up to 80,000 homes.32
The 5 countries with the most ​solar​power relative to population size are: Germany, Italy, Belgium,
Czech Republic and Greece.
30
​http://cleantechnica.com/2013/11/07/renewable­energy­charts­renewable­energy­facts/​ figs from 2012
31
http://www.treehugger.com/slideshows/renewable­energy/see­worlds­largest­thermal­solar­plant­370mw­un
der­construction­mojave­desert/
32
http://www.treehugger.com/renewable­energy/africas­largest­solar­farm­325000­pv­modules­now­fully­opera
tional.html?source=fb&subsource=20141117clfb01&utm_source=gpeace&utm_medium=fb&utm_campaign=
20141117clfb01

12.
EU has 42% of global power capacity of non-hydro renewables.
As a result power prices have fallen not just in Germany but in​neighbouring countries too .33
Denmark will invest DKK5.6 billion (USD960 million) to go 100% renewable by 2050. But the transition
will more than pay for itself - investing in energy savings and rolling out renewable energy with its
low to zero fuel costs will save Denmark DKK6.9 (USD1.17) in energy costs over the same time frame.
Germany has been a pioneer: 80% of its new generating capacity in the last decade came from
renewables (50% from solar and wind), with significant resources expended on early deployment
when costs were still high to drive technologies towards commercial viability. Spain, Portugal, and
Denmark have expanded wind power to more than 20% of electricity over the past decade.
In America, if the renewable energy sector grew 25% by 2025, it would be the same as taking the
equivalent pollution from 70 typical coal-fired plants a year out of the air and would create more34
than 202,000 clean energ​y jobs
As the transition continues, there will be more than 400,000 German clean energy jobs by 2020
There is no doubt that a fully sustainable and largely renewable global energy system is technically
and economically possible by 2050. Ecofys did the calculations for The Energy Report (TER) with the
following clear message: by utilising today's technologies alone, 95% of all energy can be renewable
by 2050, comfortable lifestyles can be developed and sustained, and long-term benefits can outweigh
short-term costs. ​Quote from David de Jager
As global renewable electricity generation expands in absolute terms, it is expected to surpass that
from natural gas and double that from nuclear power by 2016, becoming the second most important
global electricity source, after coal. Globally, renewable generation is estimated to rise to 25% of gross
power generation in 2018, up from 20% in 2011 as deployment spreads out globally .35
China dominated clean technoogy investments in 2013 investing more than $54 billion.36
33
Cheeseman, G. “ElectElectricity Prices Fall In Europe As German Renewable Energy Output Increases”, ​Triple
Pundit​, April 15th, 2014
34
​600 MW
35
http://www.iea.org/topics/renewables/
36
​http://spectrum.ieee.org/energywise/energy/renewables/energy­efficiency­grows­as­clean­energy­investment­falters