O energy sector is changing quickly in much of the world due to increased solar and wind energy generation, being the China, Brazil and The Netherlands examples to followAccording analysis published by Ember – company specialized in research and analysis on public policies, social and economic issues.
According to studyThe three nations have made a huge transformation in their energy sectors and began to offer insights crucial aspects of how a country can take advantage of the benefits of these renewable sources.
A China is a global leader in solar and wind energy, with the largest absolute generation and largest annual additions for more than a decade.
No Brazil, the study points out that clean sources have been used to meet the growing local demand for electricity.
“The country is taking advantage of the low costs of these two energy sources, making its system more resilient and avoiding creating dependence on polluting sources, as demand for electricity increases”, highlights the research.
In 2023, combined the two sources represented more than 20% of the energy produced in the country, a volume above the only 3,7% recorded, for example, in 2015.
The advance also helped Brazil reduce emissions from the energy sector from 0,56 MtCO2 per inhabitant to 0,33 MtCO2 per inhabitant in ten years, currently having the lowest per capita emissions in the entire G20.
Already The Netherlands, revamped your energy system, seeking to quickly phase out coal power and reduce gas power.
“The rapid increase in wind and solar energy reduced fossil generation from more than 80% of the energy mix to less than 50% in just five years, putting the country on the path to rapid decarbonization.”
Ember also highlights that the notable growth in wind and solar energy in the three countriess not only transformed its electrical systems at a rapid pace, but also has helped create an environment in which both sources can thrive and enable investor confidence.
“Choosing the right set of incentive mechanisms to drive demand for wind and solar systems, as well as regulatory solutions to overcome technical barriers and facilitate the integration of wind and solar energy, is more important than a company’s initial economic or geographic position. country”, highlights the study.
China
The study identified that renewable sources received prioritization Chinese government strategy in recent years not only because of concerns about the climate and pollution, but also because of the desire to reduce dependence on energy imports and build future export markets.
O country introduced targeted policies to encourage wind and solar energy, such as subsidies through tax incentives, which resulted in greater investment and faster adoption of both technologies.
Simultaneously with this, major investments in electric vehicles e Batteries. A expansion of network infrastructure, such as long-distance transmission lines, was also another important factor in bringing wind and solar resources into China's interior.
The result of this was that the country built more than a third of the global expansion of transmission networks, with targets for renewable energy deployment being pushed quickly and on a large scale.
“While China has frequently exceeded targets at the national level, with the country on track to meet its 2030 deployment targets for wind and solar in 2025, local targets have been much more ambitious. Programs like “Whole County PV,” which required solar to be installed on a certain percentage of rooftops, contributed to the rapid increase in rooftop solar throughout 2022 and 2023,” highlights Ember.
Brazil
The study assesses that the investments in renewable sources in Brazil it is something that became more encouraged after the 2001 energy crisis, in which droughts severely restricted the availability of energy generated by hydroelectric plants.
On that occasion, the country introduced PROINFA (Alternative Sources of Electricity Incentive Program) to promote other renewable sources, such as solar and wind.
"That included auctions for wind and solar projects from the mid-2000s, which allowed fixed-price contracts and stimulated investment and growth in the renewable energy sector. This was aided by financial for private companies through BNDES (National Bank for Economic and Social Development)”, highlights the survey.
The Ember study also drew attention to the decision of the ANEEL (National Electric Energy Agency) to introduce and expand the size of installations in the distributed micro and mini generation segment.
“This was a tremendous driver of the adoption of distributed generation, with photovoltaic solar energy making up the vast majority of these installations,” highlights the study.
The Netherlands
In the Netherlands, the Solar and wind generation increased from 8% in 2015 to 41% in 2023, which helped reduce the European country's dependence on fossil fuels from 84% to less than half (49%) in the period.
As a result, emissions from power generation have fallen by half and emissions have declined 46% since 2015. Solar additions, meanwhile, have been rising especially quickly in recent years.
“Despite its high latitude, the Netherlands now has the second highest per capita solar generation in the world, behind Australia,” highlights the study.
According to the survey, one of the factors that most helped to boost the promotion of solar and wind sources in the Netherlands was the announcement made in 2017 by the local government to eliminate coal by 2030.
In 2019 the dutch government agreed to legally binding targets to reduce CO2 emissions, which required a gradual reduction in gas generation as well.
A Decision included targets for onshore and offshore wind as well as solar power, with the right to long-term financial incentives through programs that rewarded producers for the CO2 reduction achieved through solar and wind energy.
In Ember's assessment, this created country a stable environment for investments in renewable energy.
“To encourage the adoption of rooftop solar, the Netherlands introduced a net metering scheme in 2004. Combined with high energy prices and the reduction in costs for solar photovoltaic installations, this policy has made rooftop solar an attractive investment for homeowners.”
Challenges
Even considering the three countries as examples, Ember emphasizes that this does not mean that these nations do not have to face challenges, including political, economic and engineering barriers.
“We have all the tools we need to get transitions off the ground where they have just started, facilitate acceleration where it is most needed, and further drive progress in countries leading the global transition,” the study highlights.
At a global level, the survey shows that, since the Paris Agreement in 2015, the combined share of wind and solar energy in the global electricity mix has increased from just 4,5% to 13,4% in the last eight years.
This progress has made wind and solar the main solutions to combat climate change, as no other source has grown from 100 TWh of generation to 1000 TWh faster than both.
In total, solar and wind sources took just 8 and 12 years, respectively, to do this, far ahead of gas (28 years), coal (32 years) and hydroelectric plants (39 years).
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