By Joby Warrick
In normal times, a months-long slide in energy prices would be enough to rattle a man who makes wind turbines for a living. Yet amid a worldwide glut of cheap fossil fuels, business is blowing strong for Vestas Wind Systems and its CEO, Anders Runevad.
The company posted record gains in 2015 and inked major deals to build wind farms in the United States, Europe, Africa and Asia. That boom in turbine sales was part of a global surge for wind and solar energy, which occurred despite oil, coal and natural gas selling at bargain rates.
“We’re seeing very good momentum across the board globally,” said Runevad, a soft-spoken Swede whose firm is now the world’s biggest producer of wind turbines. “We’re seeing growth in every region.”
Vestas’ performance is emblematic of the changing fortunes for renewable energy, an industry that achieved a number of milestones last year. Massive new projects are under construction from China and India to Texas, which now far outpaces California as the nation’s leading wind-power state. In December, the United States crossed the 70-gigawatt threshold in wind-generated electricity, with 50,000 spinning turbines producing enough power to light up 19 million homes.
Energy analysts say the boom is being spurred in part by improved technology, which has made wind and solar more competitive with fossil fuels in many regions.
But equally important, experts say, are new government policies here and abroad that favor investment in renewables, as well as a growing willingness by Wall Street to pour billions of dollars into projects once considered financially risky.
“Renewables have turned a corner in a fundamental way,” said Dan Reicher, a former Energy Department assistant secretary who is now executive director of Stanford University’s Steyer-Taylor Center for Energy Policy and Finance.
While solar and wind power have been expanding for years because of steadily falling costs, recent regulatory and financial decisions have set the stage for continued growth for years to come, according to Reicher and other energy experts.
In the United States, these include the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan, which requires states to reduce emissions from power plants, and the latest congressional budget compromise, which extended tax credits for wind and solar energy. Also key was last month’sclimate accord in Paris, where more than 190 countries approved a plan to reduce pollution from fossil-fuel burning worldwide.
“The policy base for renewables has strengthened, both on the incentives side and through mandates,” Reicher said. “At the same time, the financing of renewable-energy projects has become a mainstream business for Wall Street. The early-stage investments from Silicon Valley for clean energy were small potatoes compared to the massive investments Wall Street is making. It truly is a global business.” Signs of the industry’s momentum appear in surprising places. In China, the world’s leader in both coal consumption and greenhouse-gas emissions, demand for coal is down for the second straight year, while investment in solar and wind is soaring, according to figures released in December by the International Energy Agency.
China is expected to double its wind-power capacity to nearly 350 gigawatts over the next decade, more than any other country. Officials also intend to generate 200 gigawatts of solar by 2020.
India recently unveiled plans to install 175 gigawatts of renewable energy by 2022, and African nations have committed themselves to adding 300 gigawatts of clean-energy capacity by 2030.
A gigawatt-literally a billion watts-is roughly the amount of energy needed to power 700,000 typical American households. By comparison, the current capacity of the entire U.S. electric grid is just under 1,100 gigawatts. Still, the industry is experiencing rapid growth across the country.
THE WASHINGTON POST
By Joby Warrick
In normal times, a months-long slide in energy prices would be enough to rattle a man who makes wind turbines for a living. Yet amid a worldwide glut of cheap fossil fuels, business is blowing strong for Vestas Wind Systems and its CEO, Anders Runevad.
The company posted record gains in 2015 and inked major deals to build wind farms in the United States, Europe, Africa and Asia. That boom in turbine sales was part of a global surge for wind and solar energy, which occurred despite oil, coal and natural gas selling at bargain rates.
“We’re seeing very good momentum across the board globally,” said Runevad, a soft-spoken Swede whose firm is now the world’s biggest producer of wind turbines. “We’re seeing growth in every region.”
Vestas’ performance is emblematic of the changing fortunes for renewable energy, an industry that achieved a number of milestones last year. Massive new projects are under construction from China and India to Texas, which now far outpaces California as the nation’s leading wind-power state. In December, the United States crossed the 70-gigawatt threshold in wind-generated electricity, with 50,000 spinning turbines producing enough power to light up 19 million homes.
Energy analysts say the boom is being spurred in part by improved technology, which has made wind and solar more competitive with fossil fuels in many regions.
But equally important, experts say, are new government policies here and abroad that favor investment in renewables, as well as a growing willingness by Wall Street to pour billions of dollars into projects once considered financially risky.
“Renewables have turned a corner in a fundamental way,” said Dan Reicher, a former Energy Department assistant secretary who is now executive director of Stanford University’s Steyer-Taylor Center for Energy Policy and Finance.
While solar and wind power have been expanding for years because of steadily falling costs, recent regulatory and financial decisions have set the stage for continued growth for years to come, according to Reicher and other energy experts.
In the United States, these include the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan, which requires states to reduce emissions from power plants, and the latest congressional budget compromise, which extended tax credits for wind and solar energy. Also key was last month’sclimate accord in Paris, where more than 190 countries approved a plan to reduce pollution from fossil-fuel burning worldwide.
“The policy base for renewables has strengthened, both on the incentives side and through mandates,” Reicher said. “At the same time, the financing of renewable-energy projects has become a mainstream business for Wall Street. The early-stage investments from Silicon Valley for clean energy were small potatoes compared to the massive investments Wall Street is making. It truly is a global business.” Signs of the industry’s momentum appear in surprising places. In China, the world’s leader in both coal consumption and greenhouse-gas emissions, demand for coal is down for the second straight year, while investment in solar and wind is soaring, according to figures released in December by the International Energy Agency.
China is expected to double its wind-power capacity to nearly 350 gigawatts over the next decade, more than any other country. Officials also intend to generate 200 gigawatts of solar by 2020.
India recently unveiled plans to install 175 gigawatts of renewable energy by 2022, and African nations have committed themselves to adding 300 gigawatts of clean-energy capacity by 2030.
A gigawatt-literally a billion watts-is roughly the amount of energy needed to power 700,000 typical American households. By comparison, the current capacity of the entire U.S. electric grid is just under 1,100 gigawatts. Still, the industry is experiencing rapid growth across the country.
THE WASHINGTON POST
