Wind energy and solar power will be the cheapest forms of
power generation in every G20 country by the year 2030 at the
latest, a new Greenpeace
report has found.
Ahead of the G20 Summit in Hamburg, the Greenpeace
Germany-commissioned study also found that in about half of
the G20 countries, renewable energy has been cheaper or equal in
price to electricity generated from dirty coal or hazardous
nuclear power plants since 2015.
"There can be no excuses anymore. Climate protection
increasingly makes economic sense across the G20 as renewable
energy becomes cheaper than dirty coal and nuclear,” Greenpeace
Germany energy expert Tobias Austrup
said.
“Any G20 country that is still investing in coal and
nuclear power plants is wasting their money on technology that
will not be competitive in coming years. The G20 now has a
responsibility to send a clear signal that accelerating the clean
energy transition is not only the right thing to do for the
climate, but also for the economy.”
The Finnish Lappeenranta University of Technology study, commissioned by
Greenpeace, calculates the electricity generation costs in all
G20 countries for the years 2015 and
2030.
The study found that wind
farms already generate the cheapest form of electricity in 2015
in large parts of Europe, South America, the US, China and
Australia. Due to rapid technical progress and falling price, in
2030 solar energy will be so cheap that it will be even cheaper
than wind power in many G20
countries.
Hannah Martin, Head of Energy at Greenpeace UK,
said:
"Action on climate change will not cost us the earth. The
shift to a low carbon economy is well under way all around the
world, and with half of the G20 countries generating cheaper
electricity from renewables than coal or nuclear, the economic
case is clear. The costs of wind and solar power are still
falling, and the point when they will be the cheapest sources of
energy in every G20 country is already in
sight.
“The UK government's preference for out-dated fossil fuels
and nuclear power is costly for both consumers and the
environment. Phasing out coal, ditching new nuclear, and
investing in cutting edge technologies like offshore wind and
solar, will make bills fairer and will allow us to meet our
energy needs and our climate targets. It is time for the UK
government to pick up the pace in becoming a world leader in
clean, green, technology. They should invest in the offshore wind
capacity we already have, and prevent further dangerous warming
to our world."
Global investments mirror the results of the Greenpeace
study. UN figures reveal that in 2016 investments in renewables
were double that of investments in conventional power stations.
About 55 percent of the added electricity capacities were based
on renewable energies last year - a record figure. US President
Trump, however, is mistakenly promoting coal and nuclear
power.
"Trump’s energy policy is simply a bad deal," Austrup
added. "The US has excellent conditions for expanding its wind
and solar energy capabilities and states like California, Texas
or Iowa will not miss this chance."
