Solar Power Investment to Exceed Oil for First Time (FT)
Speaking of energy, solar power investment is set to exceed spending on oil production this year for the first time, the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA) said.
If the trend persists, it could help curb global emissions and spark continued growth in clean energy projects.
“If these clean energy investments continue to grow in line with what we have seen in the past few years?.?.?.?we will soon start to see a very different energy system emerging," the IEA’s executive director told The Financial Times.
In 2023, $1.7 trillion will be spent on clean tech vs. $1 trillion on fossil fuels. In 2018, the roughly $2 trillion in annual energy investment was split between fossil fuels and clean tech.
Why it matters:
A rebound in economic growth following the Covid-19 pandemic is driving increased spend on clean energy. Plus, concerns over the energy supply’s reliance on just a handful of countries, such as Russia, have also fueled the trend.
The U.S. Inflation Reduction Act, which provides $369 billion in subsidies and tax credits for clean energy technologies, also has helped.
Annual clean energy investment is expected to jump by 24% compared with 2021, while spending on fossil fuels will rise by 15%.
Solar power is the key theme in the coming decades. Total solar spending in 2023 could hit $380 billion, exceeding the $371 billion on oil production. Compare that with a decade ago, when oil production spending outpaced solar about five-fold.
