On 4th June, 2021, the International Energy Agency (IEA) published the World Energy Investment Report, 2021.
This year’s Report focuses on two key questions
Whether governments and investors action accelerate clean energy transitions translating into an actual clean energy projects.
Whether the energy investment response to the economic crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic impacted its implementation.
Key Findings
In India, the main driver behind domestic investment is to reduce coal imports.
The rising share of renewables in new power generation investment has been accompanied by a sharp drop in approvals for new coal-fired power plants. In India, the amount approved dropped below 1 GW, its lowest level in a decade.
Market uncertainty, lockdowns and reduced revenues fed into lower spending outlays on new power related projects, especially in India.
Investments in solar PV are anticipated to grow by more than 10% in China, India, the United States and Europe.
Nuclear power, which represents around 5% of total global investment, was also quite resilient in 2020 and is set to increase in countries with well-defined nuclear expansion plans such as China, India and the Russian Federation.
Investment in fossil-based generation decreased considerably in 2020. Around a third of the 2020 drop came from India, driven by lower spending in coal-fired plants, disruptions caused by lockdowns and lower electricity demand.
Biomethane is emerging as a promising low-carbon alternative to natural gas. Several countries, particularly in Europe and North America as well as Brazil, China and India, have encouraged its use, primarily in the transport sector.
Coal investment in China and India in 2020 stayed at similar levels to 2019, whereas in the rest of the world they fell substantially, by around one-quarter.
Asian markets presented a mixed picture with India and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region showing declines in energy efficiency investment in buildings, while China saw a 5% increase along with modest growth in Japan and Korea.
The share of India in industry efficiency investment is around 9%.
