The richest nations, including the G7 countries, are failing to uphold their commitments to global renewable energy expansion.

Instead, they are increasingly investing in fossil fuel projects in developing countries such as Bangladesh, obstructing global carbon emission reduction targets.

This data was revealed in a report by Global Energy Monitor (GEM) on Tuesday, according to a press release.

The report shows that global solar and wind power capacity grew by one-fifth last year. However, the G7 countries contributed very little to this new capacity, despite their commitments to facilitate renewable energy investments in climate-vulnerable nations like Bangladesh.

GEM highlights that rather than prioritising renewable energy projects in Bangladesh—one of the most climate-vulnerable countries—wealthy nations are increasing investments in polluting energy sources such as LNG and coal.

In 2023, Japan finalised the fossil fuel-dependent Integrated Energy and Power Master Plan (IEPMP), which largely overlooked promising sectors like solar and wind energy.

The Global Solar Power Tracker and Global Wind Power Tracker include all projects that have been announced, entered pre-construction, or are currently under construction for solar capacity over one megawatt (MW) and utility-scale wind capacity over 10 MW.

During 2024, prospective utility-scale solar and wind capacity grew to 4.4 terawatts (TW). Utility-scale solar and wind are largely equal in their prospective development, with 2 TW and 2.5 TW, respectively.

According to the report, China currently leads in potential solar and wind power capacity, surpassing 1.3 TW, which accounts for more than one-quarter of the global total.

Following China, the other top countries include Brazil (417 gigawatts), Australia (372 GW), the United States (218 GW), and Spain (144 GW).

India has set a goal to generate nearly 130 GW of solar and wind power in the coming years, with 35 GW expected to be added to the grid by March 2025.

Over the past year, India’s large-scale solar and wind capacity has increased by 50%, indicating substantial investment in the renewable energy sector.

In contrast, G7 countries—despite representing 45% of the global GDP—are currently constructing only 59 GW of solar and wind power projects, a significantly smaller figure compared to China and the global total of 416 GW.

The GEM report also shows that outside China, the construction of solar and wind projects has slowed. Currently, only 226 GW (7% of the total potential capacity) is under construction.

If renewable energy projects fail to be implemented on time, the goal of tripling renewable energy capacity by 2030, set during COP28, may be jeopardised.

As of December 2023, 185 GW of solar and wind projects were expected to become operational in 2024. However, globally, only 59% of these projects have begun generation as scheduled.

Despite their relatively low share in total renewable energy capacity, G7 countries have a higher success rate in completing projects on time.

Seventy-six percent of their solar and wind projects have been commissioned on schedule, compared to 55% in China and 52% in other countries.

Diren Kocakuşak, Research Analyst for Global Energy Monitor, said, “The growth of wind and solar in the last year is promising, but the world needs to pick up the pace and bring these projects online much faster.”

Kocakuşak noted, “Addressing barriers such as limitations on the physical grid, permitting bottlenecks, and lack of financing can help bring us closer to tripling renewables capacity and limiting the worst impacts of a changing climate.”

News Link: G7 fails renewable pledges, boosts fossil fuel investments