Renewable Electricity Generation – Now and Ahead

Though the world continued to face lower electricity demand, supply chain challenges, and construction delays amid the global coronavirus pandemic, renewable energy usage increased by 3% in 2020 as demand for all other fuels declined globally.  Electricity generation from renewable sources also increased by 7% during this time. Renewables accounted for a decent 29% of the overall global electricity generation mix in 2020 up from 27% in 2019.

Renewable energy generation is projected to reach 8300 TWh in 2021 with wind and solar being the biggest contributors and China expected to account for more than 50% of the global increase in renewable electricity. The U.S., Europe, and India will also be major contributors to the global renewable electricity increase in the coming year. Wind energy is expected to grow by 17% YoY in 2021 with major activity expected in China and the U.S. while global Solar PV electricity generation is expected to increase by 18%. 2021 will also witness a hike in hydropower generation and bioenergy.

India’s PV market was expected to recover rapidly in 2021, however, the second wave of COVID-19 infection will act as a major dampener to the growth. India is reeling under the pressure of the second wave of the pandemic with life coming to a standstill. We expect a slowdown in solar projects in India once again as work remains stalled in all major cities. The Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission (GERC) has already granted a one-month extension for the execution of PPAs to small-scale distributed solar project developers in this regard. The prospects of solar and renewable energy remain strong in the long run. Given the current situation that mankind has suffered, they are now more aware of their well-being and the betterment of the overall environment as well. As such eco-friendly resources will continue to benefit from this growing trend. It is only a matter of time that renewable sources of energy generation will top the chart of the overall generation mix globally.