Renewable Energy Technologies
Viewpoints
2023
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November:
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October:
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September:
PV Leaf for Efficient Solar-Power and Clean-Water Generation
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August:
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July:
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June:
Sustainable Aviation Fuel from Green Hydrogen and Carbon Dioxide
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May:
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April:
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March:
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February:
2022
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December/January:
2022: The Year in Review
Look for These Developments in 2023 -
November:
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October:
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September:
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August:
All-in-One-Solar-Tower Project for Sustainable Aviation Fuel
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July:
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June:
Sustainability Goals and Low Costs Driving Record Corporate Renewables Purchases
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May:
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April:
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March:
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February:
2021
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December/January:
2021: The Year in Review
Look for These Developments in 2022 -
November:
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October:
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September:
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August:
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July:
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June:
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May:
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April:
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March:
Growth Prospects for Sustainable Aviation Biofuel
Hydropower's Role in a Clean-Energy World -
February:
The New Renewables Supermajors
Perovskite Tandem Cells Near Commercialization
Archived Viewpoints
2020
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December/January:
2020: The Year in Review
Look for These Developments in 2021 -
November:
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October:
Oil Majors Back Offshore Wind
Wind-Turbine-Blade Innovations -
September:
China's Road to a National Carbon Market
Australia's Renewable-Energy-Export Ambitions -
August:
Renewables-Market Update and Outlook
Geothermal-Power Growth Opportunities -
July:
Accelerating a 90%-Clean-Energy Grid
Wave-Energy Hybrid Platforms -
June:
The Pandemic Crisis: Scenarios for the Future of Clean Energy
Scenarios Presentation: The Pandemic Crisis: Scenarios for the Future of Technology Development
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May:
The Pandemic Crisis: Key Forces That Will Shape the Future of Clean Energy
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April:
Corporate Renewables Purchases Surge
Perovskite-Solar Players to Watch -
March:
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February:
Offshore-Wind Hub Emerging in Massachusetts
Solar and Wind Power Reach a Low-Cost Milestone
2019
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December/January:
2019: The Year in Review
Look for These Developments in 2020 -
November:
Future Pathways for Renewables Commercialization
Geothermal Energy: Seeking to Heat Up Growth -
October:
Accelerating Growth in Off-Grid Renewables
Advancing Jet Fuel from Waste -
September:
Building Electrification
Massive Wind-Energy Hubs in the North Sea -
August:
Renewables Market Update: Progress and Challenges
PV Efficiency Breakthroughs on the Horizon -
July:
Floating Wind Power in California
Hydropower Expansion and Innovation -
June:
US States Ramp Up Renewables
Improving Algae-Biofuel Viability -
May:
Oil Companies Push into Clean Power
HVDC for Long-Distance Renewables Transmission -
April:
Driving Down Wind-Energy Costs
Firing Up Low-Temperature Geothermal Power -
March:
New Blockchain-Based Business Models for Renewables
Makani Power to Commercialize Offshore-Kite Power -
February:
Low-Cost Solar and Wind Power: Remaking the Energy Landscape
Bioenergy with Carbon Capture
2018
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December/January:
2018: The Year in Review
Look for These Developments in 2019 -
November:
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October:
Floating Offshore Wind Farms: A Powerful New Resource
Aviation Biofuels: Reducing the Carbon Footprint of Air Travel -
September:
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August:
Biobutanol: Positioning for Market Growth
Hydropower: A Focus on Sustainable Growth -
July:
Corporate Renewables Investments Accelerate
Dandelion's Geothermal Heat-Pump Innovations -
June:
Home-Solar Mandate in California
The Era of Low-Cost Renewables -
May:
CSP Commercialization Accelerates
Coal-to-Biomass Conversions -
April:
ExxonMobil and Synthetic Genomics Target Commercial Algae Biofuels
Zero-Energy Buildings Take Off -
March:
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February:
China's New Carbon-Trading Market
Massive Hydro-Solar Plant Enhances Grid Stability
2017
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December/January:
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November:
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October:
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September:
World's First Floating Wind Farm in the United Kingdom
Solar Windows -
August:
Stirling CSP Unit in China
Cellulosic Ethanol's Slow Advance -
July:
US Policy Shifts and Renewables
Renewable-Energy-Market Review and Outlook -
June:
Wind-Energy-Market Evolution
Geothermal-Power Commercialization Heats Up -
May:
Solar and Wind Energy Reaching Widespread Cost Parity
A New View of Reaching 100% Renewables -
April:
Progress in Artificial Photosynthesis
Oil Companies' Jumping into Offshore-Wind Energy -
March:
Seeking Better Algae for Biofuels
An Innovative Small Hydropower Application -
February:
Google Nears 100% Renewables; More Corporations to Follow
Geothermal Power with Lithium Recovery
2016
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December/January:
2016: The Year in Review
Look for These Developments in 2017 -
November:
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October:
Tidal-Energy Commercialization in Scotland
Renmatix Cellulosic-Sugar Technology -
September:
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August:
Solar Soars in the Middle East
Hybrid Renewable-Power Plants -
July:
Solar and Wind Leading the Energy Transition
Net-Zero-Energy Buildings -
June:
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May:
Soaring Wind-Energy Markets
Bigger and Smarter Wind Turbines -
April:
India's Huge Solar Ambitions
Growing Commercialization of Advanced Biofuels -
March:
US Clean Power Plan Hits a Roadblock
Integrated CSP Commercialization -
February:
A View of 100% Renewables by 2050
New Geothermal-Energy Concept with Energy and Carbon Storage
2015
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December/January:
2015: The Year in Review
Look for These Developments in 2016 -
November:
Widespread Airline-Industry Support for Aviation Biofuels
Solar Desalination for Agriculture -
October:
Growth Ahead for LanzaTech's Waste-Gas-to-Ethanol Process
Global Hydropower Trends -
September:
Renewables and the US Clean Power Plan
Offshore-Wind-Energy Outlook -
August:
Progress in Artificial Photosynthesis
Hawaii Sets 100% Renewables Mandate -
July:
Renewables and New Global Carbon Agreements
Renewables and Climate-Change Adaptation -
June:
Novel Wind-Energy Designs: The Dutch Windwheel
Fallout from Germany's Energy Transformation -
May:
Global Renewable Investments Accelerate
California Leads on Renewables Penetration -
April:
Algenol Advances Algae-Biofuels Commercialization
Ocean-Energy-Technology Evolution -
March:
Google and Apple Commit to 100% Renewables
Clean Power Plans and Grid Reliability -
February:
Renewables: Transforming Utilities
India's Renewed Solar Ambitions
2014
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December/January:
2014: The Year in Review
Look for These Developments in 2015 -
November:
Biogas and Renewable-Natural-Gas Opportunities
CAES in a California Wind-Energy Project -
October:
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September:
The Rise in Renewable-Powered Microgrids
The Value of Geothermal Power -
August:
Offshore Wind Power: Driving Down Costs
CSP Growth and Challenges -
July:
New Grid Technologies Enable Renewable Additions
Advanced Biofuels Reach Commercialization -
June:
Hydropower: Room to Grow
Spotlight on Bioenergy with Carbon Removal -
May:
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April:
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March:
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February:
Ocean Energy: Slow but Steady Progress toward Commercialization
2013
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December/January:
2013: The Year in Review
Look for These Developments in 2014 -
November:
Renewable Electricity Storage: Growth, Innovation, and Barriers
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October:
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September:
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August:
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July:
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June:
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May:
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April:
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March:
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February:
2012
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December/January:
2012: The Year in Review
Look for These Developments in 2013 -
November:
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October:
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September:
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August:
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July:
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June:
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May:
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April:
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March:
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February:
2011
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December/January:
2011: The Year in Review
Look for These Developments in 2012 -
November:
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October:
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September:
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August:
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July:
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June:
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May:
Artificial Photosynthesis: Generating Liquid Fuels from Sunlight
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April:
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March:
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February:
2010
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December/January:
2010: The Year in Review
Look for These Developments in 2011 -
November:
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October:
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September:
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August:
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July:
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June:
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May:
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April:
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March:
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February:
2009
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December/January:
2009: The Year in Review
Look for These Developments in 2010 -
November:
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October:
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September:
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August:
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July:
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June:
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May:
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April:
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March:
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February:
2008
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December/January:
2008: The Year in Review
Look for These Developments in 2009 -
November:
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October:
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September:
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August:
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July:
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June:
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May:
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April:
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March:
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February:
2007
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December/January:
2007: The Year in Review
Look for These Developments in 2008 -
November:
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October:
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September:
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August:
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July:
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June:
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May:
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April:
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March:
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February:
2006
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December/January:
2006: The Year in Review
Look for These Developments in 2007 -
November:
About Renewable Energy Technologies
Modern renewable energy technologies have become mainstream as their costs have declined dramatically in global energy markets. Renewables are increasingly the most competitive and sustainable power-generation alternatives to today's dominant fossil-fuel and nuclear technologies. Researchers continue to make advances in a broad range of renewable technologies for electricity generation, transport fuels, and heating and cooling. Renewable technologies draw on continuously replenished energy resources—including heat and light from the sun, wind, biomass, falling water, heat from inside the earth, and ocean energy. These resources are typically large and dispersed, and their energy is often convertible with little environmental impact and low- and no-carbon emissions.
Renewable energy technologies—led by solar PV, wind power, and hydropower—continue to grow rapidly in response to a confluence of drivers, including declining system costs, growth in energy demand in developing countries, environmental concerns about pollution and global warming, the desire for greater energy security, fossil-fuel-price uncertainty, and technology advances that improve the performance of renewable systems. Renewables are also stimulating innovation and economic-growth opportunities. Government policies continue to support technology development and deployment and lower market barriers. Nearly every country now provides some type of renewable energy target or other support policy, and policies in countries such as Germany, Japan, the United States, and China have proved extremely successful in encouraging deployments. Onshore-wind, solar PV, biomass, geothermal, and hydropower technologies are competitive with conventional energy supplies without subsidies in many regions. Competitive bidding programs worldwide are attracting record low prices and high volumes for solar and wind power, in particular.
Renewable energy technologies will reshape world energy markets for years to come. Global investments in renewable power and fuels—especially solar and wind power—reached $305 billion in 2018. For the fourth year in a row, investment in new renewable-power capacity exceeded combined investments in fossil-fuel and nuclear power capacity. Growth opportunities depend on local conditions—the renewable resource base, government support and energy economics, market factors, and institutional constraints. As solar-PV prices continue to plummet, grid-connected and off-grid adoptions are accelerating and creating opportunities for materials, component, and system suppliers (especially for crystalline-silicon PV technology) and developers. The concentrating-solar-power industry is much smaller but is expanding in sunny regions worldwide. Wind-turbine suppliers continue to see steady growth, led by China, and offshore-wind markets are spreading worldwide. Biofuels producers have opportunities in countries that mandate their use—but future growth depends on the commercialization of more sustainable biofuels. Large and small hydropower applications continue to expand to meet energy needs, especially in developing countries, and pumped-hydro energy storage is seeing growing use to complement solar and wind technologies. Geothermal power and heating markets are seeing moderate growth and have untapped potential in many countries. Ocean-tidal and wave-energy technologies have reached early commercialization and have significant long-term potential. All these technologies have the potential to offer clean new sources of low-carbon energy, provide sustainable economic-development opportunities, and improve the standard of living for people in rural areas. As more countries approach the large-scale use of renewables, stakeholders must also assess the economic, environmental, and social trade-offs—such as land-management issues—and integration issues associated with each technology.