What’s more impressive than the renewable technology innovations coming out of developed countries like the U.S., Germany, and Australia?
Even bigger developments from still-developing countries.
For instance, take Costa Rica, which has recently spent a record 94 straight days running on just renewable energies. From May 8 to August 9 this year, the country’s energy needs were met by 77.6% hydropower, 12.34% geothermal power, 10.05% wind power, and 0.01% solar power.
That’s a far cry better than Germany’s 78
% for a day! Of course, Costa Rica’s energy consumption is just about a quarter of Germany’s, but it’s still an impressive feat.
Afghanistan is another country adding more renewable energy capacity. But rather than a need for cleaner power, this country’s main problem is decentralized power generation—which comes from the country’s similarly decentralized geographic and political setup.
However, much like South Africa, Afghanistan has plenty of renewable power potential, from high levels of sun exposure to decent wind in the upland areas to rivers ripe for hydro-plants.
German development agency GiZ is currently helping the country install smaller grids for hydropower and solar power, which will negate the need for large-scale fossil fuel grid expansions.
Albania has gone so far as to pass a law to promote renewable energy installation. Reminiscent of the U.S.’s clean power plan, but much more insistent, the law sets a legally binding target of 38% non-hydro renewable energy by 2020.
Hydropower is not counted in this law because water is already the country’s most important natural resource, supplying 4,500 megawatts of power.
And we’ve told you before about India’s use of solar micro-grids being used to reach distant villages. This initiative is now a major political move: the government has promised that all households will have consistent power before the 2019 national election.
The quick growth of solar in India could bring the energy source’s capacity to 145 gigawatts by 2024, and create more than 670,000 new jobs.
Now, you may not think of China as a developing country, but it still categorizes itself as such. And if there is a race to renewable energy dominance, China is winning.
The country is already the world’s largest user and producer of renewable energy technology, and it has plans to make renewables account for 20% of its energy use by 2030. This comes from the increasingly desperate need to cut the country’s coal use.
High or low on the economic scale, countries around the world are making the switch to cleaner, more available energy sources.
To continue reading…
Click here to read the Guardian article.
Until next time,
Keith Kohl
Check us out on YouTube!A true insider in the technology and energy markets, Keith’s research has helped everyday investors capitalize from the rapid adoption of new technology trends and energy transitions. Keith connects with hundreds of thousands of readers as the Managing Editor of Energy & Capital, as well as the investment director of Angel Publishing’s Energy Investor and Technology and Opportunity.
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