Page 7 - AsiaElec Week 15 2022

AsiaElec RENEWABLES AsiaElec

Green investment surges

50% since October

GLOBAL
CURRENT post-COVID spending commit- energy remains a small proportion of the
ments on renewable energy by governments will unprecedented $18.2 trillion in fiscal outflows
keep the world on course for net zero by 2050, that governments have dedicated to countering
the International Energy Agency (IEA) said. the economic impacts of COVID-19.
Governments’ clean energy commitments But the IEA estimates that government
in response to the Covid-19 crisis have risen spending that has been earmarked for spending
by 50% over the past five months, reaching prior to 2023 could support over $1.6 trillion
$710bn, although there are troubling regional worth of sustainable investments by mobilising
imbalances. higher levels of private sector participation.
However, there is a huge funding gap between Even in advanced economies, some of the
rich and poor countries, a gap that could prevent earmarked funds risk not reaching the market
the developing world from decarbonising by within their envisaged timelines.
2050. Delays in setting up government pro-
This stimulus spending is more than 40% grammes, ongoing supply chain disruptions,
more than the sums spend following the global labour shortages and financial uncertainty have
financial crisis in 2008, the IEA’s Sustainable clogged project pipelines.
Recovery Tracker said in an update. In addition, consumer-facing measures –
Advanced economies account for the bulk such as incentives for building retrofits and
of this effort, with over $370bn intended to be electric vehicles – are struggling to reach a wider
spent prior to the end of 2023, a level of short- audience because of issues including red tape
term government spending that would help keep and lack of information.
the door open for the IEA’s global pathway to net “Governments who can remove red tape and
zero emissions by 2050. quickly set up effective programmes will be the
Across emerging and developing economies, ones to reap the benefits and position themselves
however, the spending commitments are just in the new global energy economy that is emerg-
10% of the amount in advanced economies, ing,” said Birol.
reflecting their very different financial and eco- “While the latest update of the Sustainable
nomic circumstances. Recovery Tracker does point to promising signs
In emerging and developing economies, in advanced economies, the world still needs to
around $52bn of sustainable recovery spending massively expand its clean energy deployment
is planned by the end of 2023, well short of what efforts throughout this decade, first and fore-
is needed in a pathway towards net zero emis- most in developing economies, if we are going to
sions by 2050. preserve the hope of limiting the global temper-
The gap is unlikely to narrow in the near ature rise to 1.5 °C.”
term, as governments with already limited fis- Rising fossil fuel prices, which have been
cal means now face the challenge of maintaining exacerbated by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, have
food and fuel affordability for their citizens amid pushed governments both to enact immediate
the surge in commodity prices following Russia’s measures to make energy more affordable and to
invasion of Ukraine. explore efforts to reduce fossil fuel dependency.
“Countries where clean energy is at the heart The IEA’s tracking shows that emergency
of recovery plans are keeping alive the possibil- affordability support by governments worldwide
ity of reaching net zero emissions by 2050, but for households and businesses has reached about
challenging financial and economic conditions $270bn since the start of the winter heating sea-
have undermined public resources in much of son in the Northern Hemisphere in 2021.
the rest of the world,” said Fatih Birol, the IEA But many of the measures most effective in
Executive Director. reducing oil and gas demand – such as install-
“International cooperation will be essential ing heat pumps and expanding the use of public
to change these clean energy investment trends, transport, bike lanes and high-speed rail – have
especially in emerging and developing econo- not yet received the needed level of government
mies where the need is greatest.” support to date.™
Overall, public spending on sustainable

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