The Rise of Renewable Energy
With the threat of global warming, and the ever increasing government drive towards energy efficiency, renewable power is fast becoming the way forward in energy provision, not only on an industrial or commercial scale, but also at a domestic level.
The renewable industries have witnessed a remarkable growth over the past few years, with wind power growing 30% YOY. By 2006, renewables accounted for approximately 18% of global final energy consumption, a number which continues to grow annually. The renewable sector, with financial and legislative assistance from the government, was able to ride out the economic recession better than most, and now hopes to continue to prosper in its aftermath.
Investment in new renewable capacity has doubled since 2006, indicating the drastic rise in demand for renewable power. Ethanol production has gone from 39 billion litres per year in 2006, to 67 billion in 2008. Ethanol fuel is produced from sugar cane and contributes to one of the largest renewable energy programmes in the world in which this biofuel accounts for 18% of Brazil’s automotive fuel.
Solar power, though a predictably intermittent source of energy, has the potential to provide over 1,000 times the total world energy consumption. Despite this potential, it only supplied.0.02% of the total energy consumption in 2008. If however, it continues to double in use every two or three years, it would likely become the dominant world energy source.
At the end of 2009, wind energy provided around 2% of global electricity usage. Having doubled in the past three years, wind power is a rapidly expanding source of energy. It also boasts various advantages over many other energy sources, such as its zero production levels of greenhouse gases, and its suitability for domestic as well as commercial usage. In addition to the massive wind turbines we see erected on hilltops or offshore, small wind turbines are available for use on a more parochial scale, and are ideal for rural or remote locations such as the Scottish Highlands.
The downside to wind power however, is its non-dispatchable nature. This means that the energy produced by the wind turbine must be taken when it is available. Although we are not going to run out of wind at any time soon.
