18 Renewable Energy Charts, Fun Renewable Energy Facts

2/18/2014
18 Renewable Energy Charts, Fun Renewable Energy Facts

www.itopplus.com
GO SOLAR SHOP ENERGY SMART ELECTRIC CARS SOLAR POWER WIND POWER 100% RENEWABLE ENERGY? BUY ADS SPONSOR A POST
18 Fun Renewable Energy Charts From NREL Director Dan Arvizu & Ren21s Renewables 2013 Global Status Report
65
Share
Back to Top
CleanTechnica is the #1 cleantechfocused website in the world.
Daily Cleantech News via Email All CleanTechnica Stories Solar Energy News Wind Energy News Electric Vehicle News
113
Tw eet
46
Share
1
Stumble
1
Reddit
426
Share
I had the good fortune of seeing NRELs director, Dan Arvizu, give an optimistic renewable energy and cleantech presentation in Abu Dhabi in January. He certainly knows how to pack a presentation full of interesting charts. More recently, Dan gave a presentation in Colorado that I didnt attend but have the slides for. (Actually, the slides are online [PDF].) Below are a few of my favorite slides from the new presentation, followed by several fun charts and tables from the key findings of Ren21s Renewables 2013 Global Status Report. (Thanks to a reader for tipping me off to both presentations!)
Connect!
Follow @cleantechnica 19.2K follow ers
Like
Share 10,582 people like this. Sign Up to see w hat your friends like.
Renewable Energy Charts & Facts

This first chart is on annual capacity growth rates for renewable energy technologies:
CleanTechnica
Follow +1
Heres a look at the world leaders for specific clean energy technologies (at the end of 2012):
Click here to check out sponsorship opportunities on CleanTechnica and other Important Media sites
http://cleantechnica.com/2013/11/07/renewable-energy-charts-renewable-energy-facts/
1/12
2/18/2014
Naturally, the pure capacity leaders are not necessarily the per capita or per GDP leaders normally they arent (a gripe I have with these types of ratings). For the latest on those for wind and solar, see:
1. Top Solar Power Countries 2. Top Wind Power Countries Per Capita 3. Top Wind Power Countries Per GDP
The next chart, moving away from renewables to energy use on the consumer level, is a super fun one in my opinion. Ever wonder where homes & businesses are using their energy? This chart has the details:
Solar Energy
About Solar Energy How To Go Solar The Cost of Panels, Power and Solar Energy How Much Solar Costs In Your State Top Solar Power Countries Top Solar Power States Top Solar Countries vs Top Solar States Why German Solar Is Cost of US Solar 10 Solar Lessons From Germany Shell: Solar To Be #1 Source Of Energy Solar Energy Facts & Solar Power Facts
Theres much more in Dans presentation, including many slides on NRELs extremely hightech, energy-efficient, LEED-platinum campus. Check it all out for more fun. Below are now charts from Ren21s Renewables 2013 Global Status Report . As always, I recommend checking out the full report. However, Ive also gone ahead and pulled out several of my favorite charts to share below. Enjoy! (If youve already checked out Dan Arvizus presentation, youll notice that some of the charts from the Ren21 report were used in that.)
Wind Energy
About Wind Energy Top Wind Power Countries Per Capita Top Wind Power Countries Per GDP Wind Power Is #1 Source of New Power in US
Global Renewable Energy Charts & Facts

Heres an estimate of renewable energys share of electricity production at the end of 2012:
Wind Generation Is #1 in Spain Wind = Over 30% of Electricity in Denmark Wind Energy Facts
Clean Energy
2/12
2/18/2014

What Is Clean Energy? 100% Renewable Energy Possible? How Much Renewable Energy Will Be Installed In 2030? 2040? 2050? Renewable Energy Big Pic Clean Energy Needed Now!
Electric Cars
Electric Cars For Sale in 2013 (in US) Electric Cars Are Greener Electric Cars Are Totally Bloody Awesome! Why Norway Is Electric Car World Leader Tesla Motors News
Non-hydro renewable being at 5.2% can be seen in a positive or a negative way. Its much higher than it was just a few years ago, but its still a relatively small percentage. However you look at it, though, definitely realize that it is growing fast and will for years to come. Were just getting started! Heres an even closer look at global renewable energy capacity, showing the totals by country at the end of the past 3 years:
Search the IM Network
The content produced by this site is for entertainment purposes only. Opinions and comments published on this site may not be sanctioned by, and do not necessarily represent the views of Sustainable Enterprises Media, Inc., its owners, sponsors, affiliates, or subsidiaries.
Heres a look at the worlds non-hydro renewable energy capacity leaders (again, in terms of total not relative capacity):
3/12
2/18/2014
Heres a great summary of global renewable energy jobs totals, and totals for some leading economies:
Heres a look at how many and which countries have renewable energy policies (early 2013 compared to 2005):
4/12
2/18/2014
Solar Energy Charts & Facts

Getting into solar energy specifics more, heres a look at global solar PV capacity growth:
Best Solar Investments

e ne rgyandcapital.com /Solar Solar It Going Through A R e birth Fre e R e port Give s The De tails
Thats a nice curve if Ive ever seen one! Heres a look at solar PVs global capacity split at the end of 2012:
5/12
2/18/2014
Heres a look at the top solar PV module manufacturers at the end of 2012:
Heres a look at the growth of solar water heating around the world:
Here are the leading solar water heating countries in terms of 2011 additions:
Wow. Go, China! And this last solar chart shows global solar thermal capacity growth:
6/12
2/18/2014
Wowza! And expect 2013s total to be much bigger.
Wind Power Charts & Facts

Wind power has grown at a similarly impressive rate. Check out these three charts for more on that as well as on the leading wind power countries and companies:
7/12
2/18/2014
If you might want more, check out this brief summary of the Renewables 2013 Global Status Report and then get your butt over to the reports key findings (or just jump straight over to the full report):
Renewable energy markets, industries, and policy frameworks have evolved rapidly in recent years. The Renewables Global Status Report provides a comprehensive and timely overview of renewable energy market, industry, investment, and policy developments worldwide. It relies on the most recent data available, provided by a network of more than 500 contributors and researchers from around the world, all of which is brought together by a multi-disciplinary authoring team. The report covers recent developments, current status, and key trends; by design, it does not provide analysis or forecasts.
Also see:
1. About Solar Power 2. About Wind Power 3. World Wind Power In 2012 Advances Nearly 20%
Best Solar Investments

e ne rgyandcapital.com /Solar Solar It Going Through A R e birth Fre e R e port Give s The De tails
How much is your roof worth with solar panels?

Profit from your roof space: find local deals on solar in your area, eliminate your power bill, and join the solar revolution.
Calculate my savings!
Tags: Dan Arvizu, global solar energy, global solar energy capacity, global solar energy charts, global solar energy facts, global wind energy, global wind energy charts, global wind energy facts, NREL, REN21, Renewables 2013 Global Status Report, wind turbine companies, wind turbine leaders, world solar energy, world wind energy
About the Author

Zachary Shahan is the director of CleanTechnica , the most popular cleantech-
focused website in the world, and Planetsave , a world-leading green and science news site. He has been covering green news of various sorts since 2008, and he has been especially focused on solar energy, electric vehicles, and wind energy for the past four years or so. Aside from his work on CleanTechnica and Planetsave, he's the Network Manager for their parent organization Important Media and he's the Owner/Founder of Solar Love , EV Obsession , and Bikocity . To connect with Zach on some of your favorite social networks, go to ZacharyShahan.com and click on the relevant buttons.
Related Posts
8/12
2/18/2014
Solar Securitization Intro
Huge Wind Farm Could Save California $750 Billion Off Energy Bills
Friendly Mutant Algae Which Solar Panels Could Churn Out Are Most Efficient? Sustainable Hydrogen On Your Desktop
13 Comments
Sort by Oldest
CleanTechnica
Share
Login
Favorite
Join the discussion

Grad
3 months ago
Wind grew 45GW, PV grew 29GW, which is together 74GW. That's roughly the same as 10-12GW of nuclear capacity. And how much nuclear was built worldwide in 2012? About 3.7GW, according to http://www.nuclearpowerdaily.c... It doesn't make sense to go nuclear as a low carbon source. Renewables are already much faster and cheaper.
9
Reply Share
Bob_Wallace
Top Commenter
Grad 3 months ago
Bingo! We have a winner. And renewables don't create radioactive waste. And they don't melt down and make waste of the land around them.
8 globi 1
Reply Share
Grad 3 months ago

Reply Share
According to IAEA nuclear had only a net growth of 1.7 GW last year.
A Real Libertarian
Grad 3 months ago
Wait a second. 45GW at 33% = 15GW, and 29GW at 15% = 4.5GW. Add together and that's easily 20GW of nukes. Don't forget all the nuke closings, that makes nukes even worse.
2 JamesWimberley
Reply Share
3 months ago
Oz economist John Quiggin provides a useful back-of-the envelope calculation to determine when renewables start cutting back coal (johnquiggin.com/2013/11/04/the... "Installed global capacity of coal-fired power is of the order of 1000GW. To reduce that, its necessary to install enough renewables to meet demand growth. .... 5 per cent growth is 50 GW. if we assume availability of coal is four times that of renewables, we need 200 GW of renewables a year to meet growth." We are now roughly one-third of the way to this milestone. If current growth rates continue - a big if - we will reach the Quiggin point in 2018.
1 Matt
Reply Share
3 months ago
We need to grow those dollars/year spent. Which means stronger market signals: cut support to coal/oil/gas, carbon/pollution tax, better building codes (negawatts).
3 Senlac
Reply Share
3 months ago
My head is spinning with all these graphs, because they all look so good. World wide renewables (non-Hydro) were 5.2% in 2012. Will we break 6% after 2013? I put my money on yes.
2
Reply Share
Chris Marshalk
3 months ago
9/12
2/18/2014
Chris Marshalk 2
3 months ago
What an AMAZING article !!! Go CleanTechnica :) Love the Statistics & Graphs.
Reply Share
John Brian Shannon
3 months ago
A heartwarming article Zachary! If government subsidies for fossil and nuclear were cut to the same levels as renewables receive, I bet we would be at 95%-100% renewables by 2020. Someone CleanTechnica -- please, hammer away at that angle -- fossil and nuclear subsidies, compared to renewable subsidies. Side-by-side, megawatt-by-megawatt comparison charts would be an early Christmas gift to us all. Cheers, JBS http://jbsnews.com
1 tibi stibi
Reply Share
3 months ago
the solar grow graph is a bit scary. in 2011 there was 31GW installed (from 40 to 71) and in 2012 it was down to 29GW (from 71 to 100). any explanation why it declines?
Reply Share
Grad
tibi stibi 3 months ago
Probably because of reduction of feed-in-tariffs in Europe. But it's expected to rise 35GW this year and up to 50GW in 2014, and margins have increased to double digit numbers. So PV has a bright future.
Reply Share
JMin2020
3 months ago
It has been very good for Bio Fuels and Solar. I guess we'll see how large scale wind has done in a later report.
Reply Share
Wayne Williamson
3 months ago
I wish I hadn't sold my shares of GE several years ago....

Reply Share
AROUND THE WEB
WHAT'S THIS?
Michael Schumacher Fights Pope Francis Reveals He For Life After Skiing Used to Work as a Bar Accident, Doctors Take It Bouncer World News 'Hour By Hour' Inquisitr
ALSO ON CLEANTECHNICA
A Year with Google Glass Will Turn You Into an Obnoxious Monster World News
The Carbon Bubble: Unburnable Fossil Fuels & Investor Risk 13 comments 189 New Renault Zoe Lease Price In UK
7 comments
Music Video: Grammy-winning Rockers The Fray & Ivanpah Solar 1 comment Lockheed Martin Cranks Up Worlds Largest Wave Energy Project 12 comments
Subscribe
Add Disqus to your site
10/12
2/18/2014
CleanTechnica is the #1 cleantechfocused website in the world, and part of the Important Media network of blogs working to make the world a better, greener place.
2014 Sustainable Enterprises Media, Inc. Go Solar Back to Top Shop Energy Smart Electric Cars Solar Power Wind Power 100% Renewable Energy? Buy Ads Sponsor A Post
11/12
2/18/2014
12/12

18 Renewable Energy Charts, Fun Renewable Energy Facts

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

18 Renewable Energy Charts, Fun Renewable Energy Facts

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

2/18/2014