Page 7 - AsiaElec Week 29 2021

AsiaElec RENEWABLES AsiaElec

Wind CEOs warn G20 to “get

serious” about renewable energy

P LEADING CEOs of the global wind industry are after the Paris Agreement was reached in 2015.
calling on G20 members to show leadership in It is expected to be the most significant climate
the climate crisis by raising national ambitions change meeting since the agreement.
and are urgently laying out concrete plans for GWEC noted that at the end of 2020, even
increased wind energy production to replace with all the stated ambition and progress, no G20
fossil fuels. countries were deemed to have 1.5°C-compati-
Twenty-three CEOs from the Global Wind ble renewable energy targets.
Energy Coalition (GWEC) for COP26 have sent If current growth rates for wind energy
an open letter to leaders of the G20 acknowledg- persist, said the trade association, global wind
ing that while some progress has been made in capacity will fall dramatically short of the vol-
the energy transition, current net-zero pledges umes required for carbon neutrality by 2050,
from G20 countries still put the world on a 2.4C with installation shortfalls of as much as 57% by
global warming pathway, well beyond the Paris 2050, it warned.
Agreement targets and what is needed to avoid The letter highlights that the recent roadmap
the worst impacts of climate change. from the International Energy Agency (IEA)
“G20 member countries represent more than shows that annual wind deployment must quad-
80% of global energy-related carbon emissions – ruple from 93 GW in 2020 to 390 GW in 2030 to
so the leaders of these countries hold the power meet a net-zero-by-2050 scenario.
and [have a] public duty to transform the world’s The letter is signed by the leaders of major
energy system,” said Ben Backwell, GWEC wind power companies – such as Vestas Wind
CEO. “These countries need to get serious about Systems, Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy,
renewables, and in particular wind energy as the Ørsted, SSE, RWE and Mainstream Renewable
clean energy solution with the most potential to Power, and associations representing the indus-
help the world meet its Paris Agreement targets.” try in key regions such as the UK, Brazil, China,
The upcoming COP26 conference in Glas- Mexico and South Africa. Notably, the signato-
gow in November is crucial, and will emphasise ries do not include the world’s largest wind tur-
how much still needs to be achieved five years bine manufacturer, GE.™

Week 29 21•July•2021 www. NEWSBASE .com P7