KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 22): The world’s wind and solar projects combined to meet more than a 10th of global electricity demand for the first time in 2022.

In a report on Wednesday (Sept 21), strategic research provider BloombergNEF (BNEF) said that at the same time overall electricity demand, production from coal-fired power plants, and emissions all surged in 2021 as the global economy regained its footing following the Covid-19 pandemic.

The UN secretary general’s special envoy for climate ambition and solutions, and founder of Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies Michael R Bloomberg said new spikes in coal generation are a troubling sign for the economy, people's health, and the fight against climate change.

“This report should be a rallying cry to leaders around the world that the transition to clean energy requires bigger and bolder actions, including actions that empower nations that have contributed the least to climate change — but bear many of its worst consequences — to make progress tackling it,” he said.

BNEF said that with nearly 3,000 terawatt-hours of electricity produced, wind and solar accounted for a combined 10.5% of global 2021 generation.

It said wind’s contribution to the global total rose to 6.8% while solar climbed to 3.7%.

A decade ago, these two technologies combined accounted for well under 1% of total electricity production.

In all, 39% of all power produced globally in 2021 was carbon free. Hydro and nuclear projects met just over one quarter of the world’s electricity needs, said the firm.

Meanwhile, BNEF head of energy transitions Luiza Demôro said renewables are now the default choice for most countries looking to add or even replace power-generating capacity.

“This is no longer due to mandates or subsidies, but simply because these technologies are more often the most cost-competitive,” she said.

BNEF said solar continued to expand at a particularly fierce pace in 2021, both in terms of new capacity additions and new markets. Solar was half of all global capacity added, at 182 gigawatts.

Its contribution to global grids topped 1,000 terawatt-hours for the first time.

Solar has also become essentially ubiquitous.

In nearly half of all countries tracked by BNEF where some capacity was added, solar was the top choice in terms of volume.

At least 112 countries now have at least one megawatt of solar capacity installed, the firm said.

BNEF said as the global economy recovers from the Covid-19 pandemic, electricity demand surged 5.6% year-on-year, putting new strains on existing infrastructure and fossil fuel supply chains.

It said lower-than-expected production from hydro plants and higher natural gas prices also helped put coal-fired power back in the spotlight in more markets.

Production from coal plants set records by jumping 8.5% from 2020-2021 (up 750 terawatt-hours on a net basis), to 9,600 terawatt-hours.

Over 85% of that generation came from 10 countries, with China, India and the US alone accounting for 72%.

Meanwhile, countries continued to complete constructions of new coal plants in 2021, and coal still accounts for the single largest share of global capacity at 27%.

One small bright spot: the speed at which new coal is being added to the grid is slowing.

Just 13 gigawatts of new coal-fired capacity was completed in 2021, down from 31 gigawatts in 2020 and 83 gigawatts in 2012, said BNEF.