RENEWABLES 2016

GLOBAL STATUS REPORT

KEY FINDINGS

2016

RENEWABLE ENERGY POLICY NETWORK

FOR THE 21ST CENTURY
REN21 is the global renewable energy policy multi-stakeholder network that
connects a wide range of key actors. REN21s goal is to facilitate knowledge
exchange, policy development and joint action towards a rapid global transition
to renewable energy.
REN21 brings together governments, nongovernmental organisations, research
and academic institutions, international organisations and industry to learn from
one another and build on successes that advance renewable energy. To assist
policy decision making, REN21 provides high-quality information, catalyses
discussion and debate, and supports the development of thematic networks.
REN21 facilitates the collection of comprehensive and timely information on
renewable energy. This information reflects diverse viewpoints from both private
and public sector actors, serving to dispel myths about renewable energy and to
catalyse policy change. It does this through six product lines.

Global Status Report:

yearly publication since 2005

REN21
publications:

2004
REN21 Renewables
events: 2004, Bonn

Chinese
Renewable Energy
Status Report

First GSR
published

2005
BIREC,
Beijing
International
Renewable Energy
Conference

2006

2007

2008
WIREC,
Washington
International
Renewable Energy
Conference

2009

Indian
Renewable Energy
Status Report
Renewables
Interactive Map

2010

DIREC,
Delhi
International
Renewable Energy
Conference

RENEWABLES GLOBAL STATUS REPORT (GSR)

GLOBAL FUTURE REPORTS (GFR)

First released in 2005, REN21's Renewables Global Status Report

(GSR) has grown to become a truly collaborative effort, drawing
on an international network of over 500 authors, contributors
and reviewers. Today it is the most frequently referenced report
on renewable energy market, industry and policy trends.

REN21 produces reports that illustrate the credible possibilities

for the future of renewables within particular thematic areas.

REGIONAL REPORTS
These reports detail the renewable energy developments of a
particular region; their production also supports regional data
collection processes and informed decision making.

The Renewables Interactive Map is a research tool for tracking

the development of renewable energy worldwide. It complements
the perspectives and findings of REN21s Global and Regional
Status Reports by providing continually updated market and
policy information as well as offering detailed, exportable country
profiles.

Global Futures Report

2011

2012

The International Renewable Energy Conference (IREC) is a

high-level political conference series. Dedicated exclusively to
the renewable energy sector, the bi-ennial IREC is hosted by a
national government and convened by REN21.

www.ren21.net/map

Global Futures Report

Global Status Report
on Local Renewable
Energy Policies

The REN21 Renewables Academy provides an opportunity

for lively exchange among the growing community of REN21
contributors. It offers a venue to brainstorm on future-orientated
policy solutions and allows participants to actively contribute on
issues central to a renewable energy transition.

INTERNATIONAL RENEWABLE ENERGY CONFERENCES

(IRECS)

RENEWABLES INTERACTIVE MAP

Regional Reports

RENEWABLES ACADEMY

MENA
Renewable Energy
Status Report

ECOWAS
Renewable Energy
and Energy Efficiency
Status Report

2013

2014

ADIREC,
Abu Dhabi
International
Renewable Energy
Conference

First REN21
Renewables
Academy,
Bonn

REN21
Renewables Academy

SADC and UNECE

Renewable Energy
and Energy Efficiency
Status Reports
Renewables Interactive
Map revamp

2015

International
Renewable Energy
Conferences

EAC Renewable
Energy and Energy
Efficiency Status
Report

2016

SAIREC,
South Africa
International
Renewable Energy
Conference
3

REN21 STEERING COMMITTEE

INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS

INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATIONS

NGOS

Ernesto Macas Galn

Alliance for Rural Electrification (ARE)

Yongping Zhai
Asian Development Bank (ADB)

Greg Wetstone
American Council On Renewable Energy
(ACORE)

Mahama Kappiah
ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy
and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE)

Irene Giner-Reichl
Global Forum on Sustainable Energy
(GFSE)

Li Junfeng
Chinese Renewable Energy Industries
Association (CREIA)
Kane Thornton
Clean Energy Council (CEC)
Rainer Hinrichs-Rahlwes
European Renewable Energies Federation
(EREF)
Steve Sawyer
Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC)
Marietta Sander
International Geothermal Association (IGA)
Richard Taylor
International Hydropower Association
(IHA)

Paula Abreu Marques

European Commission (EC)
David Rodgers
Global Environment Facility (GEF)
Paolo Frankl
International Energy Agency (IEA)
Adnan Z. Amin
International Renewable Energy Agency
(IRENA)
Marcel Alers
United Nations Development Programme
(UNDP)
Mark Radka
United Nations Environment Programme
(UNEP)

Emily Rochon
Greenpeace International
Emani Kumar
ICLEI Local Governments for
Sustainability, South Asia
Tetsunari Iida
Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies
(ISEP)
Ibrahim Togola
Mali Folkecenter (MFC) / Citizens United
for Renewable Energy and Sustainability
Ahmed Badr
Regional Center for Renewable Energy
and Energy Efficiency (RCREEE)
Tomas Kberger
Renewable Energy Institute
Harry Lehmann
World Council for Renewable Energy
(WCRE)

Karin Haara
World Bioenergy Association (WBA)

Pradeep Monga
United Nations Industrial Development
Organization (UNIDO)

Stefan Gsnger
World Wind Energy Association (WWEA)

Gevorg Sargsyan
World Bank

Rafael Senga
World Wildlife Fund (WWF)

MEMBERS AT LARGE

NATIONAL GOVERNMENTS

SCIENCE AND ACADEMIA

Kirsty Hamilton
Chatham House

Reinaldo Salgado Brazil

Nicols R. Di Sbroiavacca
Fundacion Bariloche

Michael Eckhart
Citigroup, Inc.

Ursula Borak / Tania Rdiger-Vorwerk

Germany

Peter Rae
REN Alliance

Tarun Kapoor India

David Hales
Second Nature

Wolsey Barnard South Africa

Mohamed El-Ashry
United Nations Foundation

Rasmus Abilgaard Kristensen Denmark

ivind Johansen Norway

Marisa Olano Spain
Thani Ahmed Al Zeyoudi
United Arab Emirates
Griff Thompson
United States of America

CHAIR

EXECUTIVE SECRETARY

Arthouros Zervos
National Technical University of Athens
(NTUA)

Christine Lins
REN21

Stefan Schurig
World Future Council (WFC)

Nebojsa Nakicenovic
International Institute for Applied Systems
Analysis (IIASA)
David Renn
International Solar Energy Society (ISES)
Doug Arent
National Renewable Energy Laboratory
(NREL)
Kevin Nassiep
South African National Energy
Development Institute (SANEDI)

DISCLAIMER:
REN21 releases issue papers and reports to emphasise the importance of renewable energy and to generate discussion on issues central
to the promotion of renewable energy. While REN21 papers and reports have benefited from the considerations and input from the REN21
community, they do not necessarily represent a consensus among network participants on any given point. Although the information given
in this report is the best available to the authors at the time, REN21 and its participants cannot be held liable for its accuracy and correctness.
4

REN21 COMMUNITY
REN21 is a multi-stakeholder network; collectively this network shares its insight
and knowledge, helping the REN21 Secretariat produce its annual Renewables
Global Status Report as well as regional reports. Today the network stands
at 700 renewable energy, energy access and energy efficiency experts. For
GSR 2016, 180 experts joined the report process, equivalent to the total number of GSR
experts in 2012.
These experts engage in the GSR process, giving their time, contributing data and
providing comment in the peer review process. The result of this collaboration is an
annual publication that has established itself as the worlds most frequently referenced
report on the global renewable energy market, industry and policy landscape.

148

countries
covered

> 16,000
newsletter subscribers

92%

REN21
COMMUNIT Y

global GDP

global
population

2,050
reviewers

AUTHORS

330
technology

contributors

country
contributors

RENEWABLES

650

GLOBAL STATUS REPORT

800 topical
contributors

RENEWABLES 2016 GLOBAL STATUS REPORT KEY FINDINGS

95%

REN21
SECRETARIAT

KEY FINDINGS 2016

GLOBAL OVERVIEW
An extraordinary year for renewable energy
The year 2015 was an extraordinary one for renewable energy,
with the largest global capacity additions seen to date, although
challenges remain, particularly beyond the power sector. The year
saw several developments that all have a bearing on renewable
energy, including a dramatic decline in global fossil fuel prices;
a series of announcements regarding the lowest-ever prices for
renewable power long-term contracts; a significant increase in
attention to energy storage; and a historic climate agreement in
Paris that brought together the global community.
Renewables are now established around the world as
mainstream sources of energy. Rapid growth, particularly in the
power sector, is driven by several factors, including the improving
cost-competiveness of renewable technologies, dedicated
policy initiatives, better access to financing, energy security
and environmental concerns, growing demand for energy in
developing and emerging economies, and the need for access to
modern energy. Consequently, new markets for both centralised
and distributed renewable energy are emerging in all regions.
2015 was a year of firsts and high-profile agreements and
announcements related to renewable energy. These include
commitments by both the G7 and the G20 to accelerate access
to renewable energy and to advance energy efficiency, and the
United Nations General Assemblys adoption of a dedicated
Sustainable Development Goal on Sustainable Energy for All
(SDG 7).
The years events culminated in December at the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Changes (UNFCCC) 21st
Conference of the Parties (COP21) in Paris, where 195 countries
agreed to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius.
A majority of countries committed to scaling up renewable
energy and energy efficiency through their Intended Nationally
Determined Contributions (INDCs). Out of the 189 countries that
submitted INDCs, 147 countries mentioned renewable energy,
and 167 countries mentioned energy efficiency; in addition, some
countries committed to reforming their subsidies for fossil fuels.
Precedent-setting commitments to renewable energy also were
made by regional, state and local governments as well as by the
private sector.
Although many of the initiatives announced in Paris and
elsewhere did not start to affect renewable markets in 2015,
there were already signs that a global energy transition is under
way. Renewable energy provided an estimated 19.2% of global
final energy consumption in 2014, and growth in capacity and
generation continued in 2015.

An estimated 147 gigawatts (GW) of renewable power capacity was

added in 2015, the largest annual increase ever, while renewable
heat capacity increased by around 38 gigawatts-thermal (GWth),
and total biofuels production also rose. This growth occurred
despite tumbling global prices for all fossil fuels, ongoing fossil
fuel subsidies and other challenges facing renewables, including
the integration of rising shares of renewable generation, policy
and political instability, regulatory barriers and fiscal constraints.
Global investment also climbed to a new record level, in spite of
the plunge in fossil fuel prices, the strength of the US dollar (which
reduced the dollar value of non-dollar investments), the continued
weakness of the European economy and further declines in per
unit costs of wind and solar PV. For the sixth consecutive year,
renewables outpaced fossil fuels for net investment in power
capacity additions.
Private investors stepped up their commitments to renewable
energy significantly during 2015. The year witnessed both an
increase in the number of large banks active in the renewables
sector and an increase in loan size, with major new commitments
from international investment firms to renewables and
energy efficiency. New investment vehicles including green
bonds, crowdfunding and yieldcos expanded during the
year. Mainstream financing and securitisation structures also
continued to move into developing country markets as companies
(particularly solar PV) and investors sought higher yield, even at
the expense of higher risk.
In parallel with growth in markets and investments, 2015 saw
continued advances in renewable energy technologies, ongoing
energy efficiency improvements, increased use of smart grid
technologies and significant progress in hardware and software
to support the integration of renewable energy, as well as
progress in energy storage development and commercialisation.
The year also saw expanded use of heat pumps, an energyefficient solution for heating and cooling.
Employment in the renewable energy sector (not including
large-scale hydropower) increased in 2015 to an estimated
8.1 million jobs (direct and indirect). Solar PV and biofuels
provided the largest numbers of renewable energy jobs. Largescale hydropower accounted for an additional 1.3 million direct
jobs. Considering all renewable energy technologies, the leading
employers in 2015 were China, Brazil, the United States and India.

POWER SECTOR

HEATING AND COOLING SECTOR

Record year for solar PV and wind, transformation

accelerates

Increasing awareness, but challenges continue to

inhibit growth rates

The power sector experienced its largest annual increase in

capacity ever, with significant growth in all regions. Wind and
solar PV had record additions for the second consecutive year,
accounting for about 77% of new installations, and hydropower
represented most of the remainder. The world now adds more
renewable power capacity annually than it adds (net) capacity
from all fossil fuels combined. By the end of 2015, renewable
capacity in place was enough to supply an estimated 23.7% of
global electricity, with hydropower providing about 16.6%.

Modern renewable energy supplies approximately 8% of final

energy for heating and cooling services worldwide in buildings
and industry, the vast majority of which is provided by biomass,
with smaller contributions from solar thermal and geothermal
energy. However, approximately three-quarters of global energy
use for heat is fossil fuel-based.

Electricity from hydro, geothermal and some biomass power

sources has been broadly competitive with power from fossil
fuels for some time; in favourable circumstances (i.e., with good
resources and a secure regulatory framework), onshore wind
and solar PV also are cost-competitive with new fossil capacity,
even without accounting for externalities. In 2015 and early 2016,
expectations of further cost improvements were made evident
by record-low winning bids in power auctions in places ranging
from Latin America, to the Middle East and North Africa region,
to India.
Globally, renewable electricity production in 2015 continued to
be dominated by large (e.g., megawatt-scale and up) generators
that are owned by utilities or large investors. At the same time,
there are markets where distributed, small-scale generation
has taken off, or is starting to do so. Bangladesh is the worlds
largest market for solar home systems, and other developing
countries (e.g., Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania in Africa; China,
India and Nepal in Asia; Brazil and Guyana in Latin America)
are seeing rapid expansion of small-scale renewable systems,
including renewables-based mini-grids, to provide electricity for
people living far from the grid. Developed countries and regions
including Australia, Europe, Japan and North America have
seen significant growth in numbers of residential and industrial
electricity customers who produce their own power.

Policy support for renewable heating and cooling remained

far below support in other sectors. Overall, despite ongoing
challenges to renewable heating and cooling markets in 2015,
there were international signals that awareness and political
support for related technologies may be growing.

TRANSPORT SECTOR
Advances in new markets, applications and
infrastructure
Renewable energy accounted for an estimated 4% of global fuel
for road transport in 2015. Liquid biofuels continued to represent
the vast majority of the renewable energy contribution to the
transport sector. The year saw advances in new markets and
applications, such as aviation biofuels.
Infrastructure for compressed natural gas vehicles and fuelling
stations continued to spread, creating further opportunities for
integrating biomethane, particularly in Europe. Electric mobility
research advanced, with a number of announcements regarding
new developments in both light- and heavy-duty electric vehicles
(EVs), while exploration of methods to integrate renewable energy
into EV charging stations also continued to expand.
Policy support for renewable energy in the transport sector
continues to lag behind such support in the power sector.

RENEWABLES 2016 GLOBAL STATUS REPORT KEY FINDINGS

Around the world, technical, economic and market transformation

of the electric power sector continued to accelerate, and many
countries have begun to respond to the challenge of grid
integration. Technological advances, expansion into new markets
with better resources, and improved financing conditions
continued to reduce costs in 2015.

Although the total capacity and generation of renewable heating

and cooling technologies continued to rise, 2015 saw global
growth rates decline, due in part to low global oil prices. Trends
differed substantially by region, however. Solar energy was
integrated into a number of district heating systems in 2015,
largely in Europe. While there is growing interest in district
cooling systems, the use of renewable energy in these systems
is as of yet rare.

POLICY LANDSCAPE
The vast majority of countries worldwide had renewable energy
support policies in place by the end of 2015. These policies
received increased interest during the year as part of the global
effort during COP21 in Paris to mitigate global climate change.
The total number of countries with renewable energy policies
increased again in 2015. As of year-end 2015, at least 173
countries had renewable energy targets (not considering
INDCs), and an estimated 146 countries had renewable energy
support policies, at the national or state/provincial level.
Several jurisdictions raised the ambition of their targets and
strengthened their policies, although many weakened their
support for renewables.

POLICIES FOR ELECTRICITY

Electricity continues to dominate policy makers'
focus
Policy makers continued to focus predominantly on renewable
power generation technologies, particularly solar PV and wind
power. As of year-end 2015, 110 jurisdictions at the national or
state/provincial level had enacted feed-in policies, making this
the most widely adopted regulatory mechanism to promote
renewable power.
Tendering has gained significant momentum in recent years and
is preferred to feed-in policies in a growing number of countries.
By the end of 2015, at least 64 countries had held renewable
energy tenders, with record bids in terms of both low price and
high volume seen across the worlds developing and emerging
countries. European countries also are transitioning to tendering,
reflecting the shift in EU policy.
In addition, 52 countries had adopted net metering / net billing
policies, including four new policies adopted at the national
level and five added at the state/provincial level. Fiscal policies,
including grants, loans and tax incentives, continued to be
important tools for promoting the deployment of new projects and
the advanced development of renewable energy technologies.
Many countries use a combination of these policies to advance
renewables in the power sector.

POLICIES FOR HEATING AND COOLING

Policy support remains well below other sectors
The slow pace of adoption of policies to support renewable
heating and cooling technologies continued throughout 2015.
Policies that have been adopted are directed mainly towards
renewable heating technologies rather than renewable cooling,
and they focus primarily on smaller-scale solar thermal heating
options in residential and commercial buildings, such as solar
water heaters.
An estimated 47 countries worldwide had targets for renewable
heating or cooling in place by the end of 2015. Renewable heating
targets were included in the INDCs submitted to the UNFCCC
by Bosnia and Herzegovina, Jordan and Malawi. At least 21
countries had mandates for renewable heating and cooling
technologies during the year, and no new ones were added at
8

the national or state/provincial level. Due to the slow progress in

adopting regulatory support, fiscal incentives remain the primary
mechanism that policy makers use to support the renewable
heating and cooling sectors.

RENEWABLE ENERGY TRANSPORT POLICIES

Slow development and shifting support to secondgeneration biofuels
Nearly all policies adopted in the renewable transport sector in
2015, as in past years, were directed at road transport through
support for biofuels production and use. Policies to promote the
integration of renewable energy and electric vehicles, as well as
the use of renewables in aviation, rail or shipping, have been slow
to develop.
As of year-end 2015, biofuel mandates were in place in 66
countries at the national or state/provincial level. Support has
shifted increasingly towards the promotion of advanced biofuels
in new policy development, although, globally, most policies
adopted to date focus on first-generation biofuels.

CITY AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT RENEWABLE

ENERGY POLICIES
Continuing to lead with innovative policies
Cities and municipalities continued to expand their influence
as leaders in the global energy transition. The important role
of municipal governments and local-level climate-based
commitments in promoting deployment of renewable energy
technologies on a large scale was highlighted as an important
component of the COP21 climate negotiations in Paris.
Cities relied on a mix of regulatory policies, mandates and direct
purchasing to support the deployment of renewable energy
within their jurisdictions.
In 2015, some cities such as Amsterdam (Netherlands) and Graz
(Austria) committed to developing their renewable heat sectors,
while others including Cape Town (South Africa) and Banff
(Canada) adopted regulatory measures to promote renewable
power. In the transport sector, some national governments
(including Kenya, Mexico and Vietnam) introduced biofuel blend
mandates as pilot initiatives in cities.
The 100% Renewable Energy movement expanded in 2015 with
new members including Byron Shire, Coffs Harbour and Uralla in
Australia; Oxford County and Vancouver in Canada; and the US
cities of Rochester (Minnesota) and San Diego (California). The
list of cities around the world that have committed to achieving a
100% renewable electricity or energy (across all sectors) system
is growing rapidly.
Cities continued to work together to advance their common
renewable energy goals through their membership in several
high-profile global and regional partnerships, such as the
Covenant of Mayors and the Compact of Mayors.

RENEWABLE ENERGY INDICATORS 2015

2014

2015

billion USD

273

285.9

Renewable power capacity (total, not including hydro)

GW

665

785

Renewable power capacity (total, including hydro)

GW

1,701

1,849

GW

1,036

1,064

Bio-power capacity3

GW

101

106

Bio-power generation (annual)

TWh

429

464

Geothermal power capacity

GW

12.9

13.2

Solar PV capacity

GW

177

227

Concentrating solar thermal power

GW

4.3

4.8

Wind power capacity

GW

370

433

GWth

409

435

Ethanol production (annual)

billion litres

94.5

98.3

Biodiesel production (annual)

billion litres

30.4

30.1

Countries with policy targets

164

173

States/provinces/countries with feed-in policies

110

110

States/provinces/countries with RPS/quota policies

98

100

Countries with tendering/ public competitive bidding5

60

64

Countries with heat obligation/mandate

21

21

Countries with biofuel mandates 6

64

66

INVESTMENT
New investment (annual) in renewable power and fuels1

POWER

Hydropower capacity

HEAT
Solar hot water capacity4

TRANSPORT

Investment data are from Bloomberg New Energy Finance and include all biomass, geothermal and wind power generation projects of more than 1 MW; all
hydro projects of between 1 and 50 MW; all solar power projects, with those less than 1 MW estimated separately and referred to as small-scale projects or
small distributed capacity; all ocean energy projects; and all biofuel projects with an annual production capacity of 1 million litres or more.
2
The GSR 2015 reported a global total of 1,055 GW of hydropower capacity at end-2014. The value of 1,036 GW shown here reflects the full difference between
end-2015 capacity (1,064 GW) and new installations in 2015 (28 GW). Capacity at end-2014 may have been greater than 1,036 GW considering an undetermined amount of capacity retirements and plant repowering during the year. Note also that the GSR strives to exclude pure pumped storage capacity from
hydropower capacity data.
3
Bio-power capacity for 2014 was adjusted upwards relative to data in GSR 2015 to reflect the most recent data available.
4
Solar hot water capacity data include water collectors only. The number for 2015 is a preliminary estimate.
5
Data for tendering/ public competitive bidding reflect all countries that have held tenders at any time up to the year of focus.
6
Biofuel policies include policies listed both under the biofuels obligation/mandate column in Table 4 (Renewable Energy Support Policies) and in Reference
Table R25 (National and State/Provincial Biofuel Blend Mandates). Countries are considered to have policies when at least one national or state/provincial-level
policy is in place.
Note: All values are rounded to whole numbers except for numbers <15, biofuels and investment, which are rounded to one decimal point.
1

RENEWABLES 2016 GLOBAL STATUS REPORT KEY FINDINGS

POLICIES

MARKET AND INDUSTRY TRENDS

BIOMASS ENERGY
Continued growth but challenges remain
Bioenergy production continued to increase in 2015, helping to
meet rising energy demand in some countries and contributing
to environmental objectives. However, the sector also faced a
number of challenges, in particular from low oil prices and policy
uncertainty in some markets.
Bio-heat production for buildings and industrial uses grew slowly
in 2015, with modern uses of bio-heat rising by approximately 3%
from 2014 levels. There has been marked growth in the use of
biomass for district heating in the Baltic and Eastern European
regions. The use of bio-power has increased more quickly
averaging some 8% annually with rapid growth in generation
notable in China, Japan, Germany and the United Kingdom.
Ethanol production increased by 4% globally, with record
production levels in the United States and Brazil. Global
production of biodiesel fell slightly due to constrained production
in some Asian markets, although growth continued in the
major producing countries (the United States and Brazil). Blend
mandates sheltered demand for biofuels from falling fossil
fuels prices, but uncertainty about future markets constrained
investment in new production capacity during the year.
2015 saw continuing progress in the commercialisation and
development of advanced biofuels, with expansion in the capacity
and production of fuels by both thermal and biological routes.

GEOTHERMAL POWER AND HEAT

Steady growth hampered by low fossil fuel

prices and high development risk
About 315 MW of new geothermal power capacity came online
in 2015, bringing the global total to 13.2 GW. Geothermal power
generated an estimated 75 terawatt-hours (TWh) during the
year. Low fossil fuel prices, coupled with perpetually high
project development risk, created unfavourable conditions for
geothermal power. Turkey led the market, commanding about
half of new global capacity additions.
Geothermal direct use amounted to an estimated 272 petajoules
(75 TWh) of heat energy in 2015. An estimated 1.2 GWth was added
in 2015 for a total capacity of 21.7 GWth. The average annualised
growth rate in direct use geothermal heat consumption has been
a little over 3% in recent years.

HYDROPOWER

Industry responds to climate risk and rising

shares of variable renewables
Approximately 28 GW of new hydropower capacity (excluding
pumped storage) was commissioned in 2015, increasing total
global capacity to about 1,064 GW. It is estimated that global
generation rose to about 3,940 TWh. Persistent droughts
continued to adversely affect hydropower output in many
regions, including the Americas and Southeast Asia. Chinas
domestic market continued to contract, but the country
retained the global lead by a wide margin, with 16 GW
added. Significant capacity also was added in Brazil, Turkey,
India, Vietnam, Malaysia, Canada, Colombia and Lao PDR.
10

Climate risk and growing shares of variable renewable power

are driving further adaptation in the hydropower industry.
Modernisation, retrofits and expansion of existing facilities
continued in many markets to improve efficiency, flexibility
and system resilience. Responses to rising shares of variable
renewables have included an increased emphasis on pumped
storage and co-implementation of hydropower with solar and
wind power.

OCEAN ENERGY

Development continues in wave and tidal

current technologies
Ocean energy capacity, mostly tidal power, remained at about
530 megawatts (MW) in 2015. The year presented a mixture
of tail- and headwinds for the ocean energy industry. A
number of companies continued to successfully advance their
technologies and to deploy new or improved devices, mostly
in European waters. However, at least one company had to
declare bankruptcy, and the industry as a whole continued to
face a constrained financial landscape beyond public funding.
As in most years, ocean energy technology deployments in 2015
were predominantly demonstration projects, with most activity
concentrated in tidal energy technologies, followed by wave
energy conversion devices.

SOLAR PV

Record deployment and rapid expansion into

new markets
The solar PV market was up 25% over 2014 to a record 50 GW,
lifting the global total to 227 GW. The annual market in 2015
was nearly 10 times the worlds cumulative solar PV capacity
of a decade earlier. China, Japan and the United States again
accounted for the majority of capacity added, but emerging
markets on all continents contributed significantly to global
growth, driven largely by the increasing cost-competitiveness of
solar PV.
An estimated 22 countries had enough capacity at end-2015 to
meet more than 1% of their electricity demand, with far higher
shares in some countries (e.g., Italy 7.8%, Greece 6.5% and
Germany 6.4%). China achieved 100% electrification, in part
because of significant off-grid solar PV installed since 2012;
on-grid, however, curtailment of solar generation started to
become a serious challenge for Chinas solar PV sector.
The industry recovery of recent years strengthened further
due to the rise of new markets and strong global demand,
and most top-tier companies were back on their feet in 2015.
Record-low bids for large-scale solar PV projects were seen
in tenders from Latin America to the Middle East to India.
Distributed rooftop solar PV remains more expensive than
large-scale projects but has followed similar price trajectories
and is competitive with retail prices in many locations.

CONCENTRATING SOLAR THERMAL POWER (CSP)

Marked shift to developing regions, increasing

importance of thermal energy storage
Morocco (160 MW), South Africa (150 MW) and the United
States (110 MW) all brought new CSP facilities online in 2015,
raising total global capacity by about 10% to nearly 4.8 GW.

Industrial capacity continued to expand in developing regions,

supported in part by local content requirements associated with
CSP procurement programmes. Large facilities (greater than
100 MW) are increasingly the norm, as is the incorporation of
TES and dry cooling technologies. CSP bid prices in national
tenders continued to decline, most notably in South Africa and
Morocco. Cost reduction and increased thermal efficiency were
key areas of focus in several research and development (R&D)
programmes around the world.

SOLAR THERMAL HEATING AND COOLING

Continued slowdown in China and Europe, but

increased deployment of large-scale projects
Global capacity of glazed and unglazed solar thermal collectors
rose by more than 6% in 2015, despite a market slowdown due
primarily to the continued contraction of markets in China and
Europe. China accounted for about 77% of newly installed solar
water heater capacity, followed by Turkey, Brazil, India and the
United States. Cumulative capacity of water collectors reached
an estimated 435 GWth by years end (with air collectors adding
another 1.6 GWth), enough capacity to provide approximately
357 TWh of heat annually.
Market development varied widely from country to country.
Denmark, Israel, Mexico, Poland and Turkey reported significant
growth. By contrast, low oil and gas prices in Europe and the
ongoing slowdown in housing construction in China dampened
these markets. Even so, several European solar thermal
manufacturers managed to increase their sales by developing
new business models, offering heat supply contracts or energy
service company (ESCO) contracts, or offering extended finance
periods.
2015 saw increasing interest in and deployment of large-scale
solar thermal systems in district heating networks and for
industrial use. Large investments signaled a new era with the start
of the construction of a 1 GWth solar process heat plant in Oman.

WIND POWER

Largest source of new renewable power

capacity; growing role in meeting electricity
demand
Wind power was the leading source of new power generating
capacity in Europe and the United States in 2015, and the second
largest in China. Globally, a record 63 GW was added for a total
of about 433 GW. Non-OECD countries were responsible for the
majority of installations, led by China, and new markets emerged
across Africa, Asia and Latin America. Corporations and other
private entities continued turning to wind energy for reliable and
low-cost power, while many large investors were drawn by its
stable returns.

The offshore sector had a strong year with an estimated 3.4 GW connected to grids, mostly in Europe, for a world total exceeding 12 GW.
Wind power is playing a major role in meeting electricity demand
in an increasing number of countries, including Denmark (42% of
demand in 2015), Germany (more than 60% in four states) and
Uruguay (15.5%).
The industry had another strong year, and most top turbine
manufacturers broke their own annual installation records.
To meet rising demand, new factories opened or were under
construction around the world. Challenges included lack of
transmission infrastructure and curtailment of wind generation
Solar
Lightingin China).
(particularly
Systems

DISTRIBUTED RENEWABLE
ENERGY FOR ENERGY ACCESS
Solar Home
Positive
market trends, innovative business models,
Systems
(SHS)

increased investment

Approximately 1.2 billion people (constituting 17% of the global

population) live without electricity, with the vast majority in
the Asia-Pacific region and sub-Saharan Africa. Distributed
renewable energy (DRE) systems continue to play an increasing
role
in providing energy services to these populations.
Biogas
Installations
Advances in technology, increased awareness of deforestation
and enhanced government support enabled the expansion of
DRE in the cooking and heating sector in 2015. By years end,
approximately 28 million households worldwide were using clean
cook stoves.
DRE solar PV markets also continued to flourish. Roughly
Clean
Cookoff-grid pico-solar products had been sold globally
44 million
Stoves
by mid-2015, representing an annual market of USD 300 million.
About 70 countries worldwide either had some off-grid solar PV
capacity installed or had programmes in place to support offgrid solar PV applications by the end of 2015. In addition, several
thousand renewables-based mini-grids were in operation,
with primary markets in Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India,
Micro-Hydro
MaliandMorocco.
Systems
The year saw positive market trends and increased investment.
Innovative business models also continued to mature, with
expanding use of mobile payment systems and scratch cards,
the Powerhive business model, pay-as-you-go micro-payment
schemes and integrated service providers with products that
range from simple solar lamps with radios and mobile phones, to
aspirational items like televisions.
DRE deployment in 2015 was supported by a variety of policy
types, such as auctions, dedicated electrification targets and
initiatives related to clean renewable cooking. Fiscal and other
incentives that focus on specific renewable energy technologies,
such as exemptions on value-added tax (VAT) and import duties,
also were in use to support DRE deployment.
Dozens of international actors, including at least 30 programmes
and approximately 20 global networks, also were involved in
deploying DRE in 2015. Many international programmes focus
specifically on improving energy access with renewables, in
Africa and elsewhere.

RENEWABLES 2016 GLOBAL STATUS REPORT KEY FINDINGS

The new facilities represent a mix of parabolic trough and tower

technologies, and all incorporate thermal energy storage (TES).
By years end, additional CSP capacity was under construction
in Morocco (350 MW), South Africa (200 MW), Israel (121 MW),
Chile (110 MW), Saudi Arabia (100 MW), China (50 MW) and India
(25 MW), reflecting a shift from traditional markets (Spain and
the United States) to developing regions with high direct normal
irradiation (DNI) levels.

11

INVESTMENT FLOWS

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

A new record high; developing and emerging

countries lead

Increased awareness, investment, policies and

targets

Global new investment in renewable power and fuels climbed

to a record USD 285.9 billion in 2015 (not including hydropower
projects >50 MW i). This represents a rise of 5% compared to 2014
and exceeds the previous record (USD 278.5 billion) achieved in
2011. Including investments in hydropower projects larger than 50
MW, total new investment during 2015 in renewable power and
fuels (not including renewable heating and cooling) was at least
USD 328.9 billion.

Emphasis on activities to improve energy efficiency in all sectors

increased during 2015 at all levels of government, as well as in
the private sector. There is growing recognition worldwide that
energy efficiency can play a key role in reducing energy-related
emissions and that it can provide multiple economy-wide benefits
such as enhanced energy security, reduced fuel poverty and
improved public health.

In 2015, global investment in new renewable power capacity, at

USD 265.8 billion ii, was more than double the USD 130 billion
allocated to new coal- and natural gas-fired power generation
capacity. This difference in favour of renewables is the largest
witnessed to date. If hydropower projects larger than 50 MW
are considered, the spread between renewables and fossil fuel
investment in new power capacity is even greater.
For the first time in history, total investment in renewable power
and fuels in developing countries in 2015 exceeded that in
developed economies. The developing world, including China,
India and Brazil, committed a total of USD 156 billion (up 19%
compared to 2014). China played a dominant role, increasing its
investment by 17% to USD 102.9 billion, accounting for 36% of
the global total. Renewable energy investment also increased
significantly in India, South Africa, Mexico and Chile. Other
developing countries investing more than USD 500 million in
renewables in 2015 included Morocco, Uruguay, the Philippines,
Pakistan and Honduras.
By contrast, renewable energy investment in developed countries
as a group declined by 8% in 2015, to USD 130 billion. The most
significant decrease was seen in Europe (down 21% to USD 48.8
billion), despite the regions record year of financing for offshore
wind power (USD 17 billion, up 11% from 2014). In the United
States, renewable energy investment (dominated largely by solar
power) increased by 19% to USD 44.1 billion, the countrys largest
increase in dollar terms since 2011.
Investment in renewable energy has been weighted increasingly
towards wind and solar power. Solar power was again the
leading sector by far in terms of money committed during 2015,
accounting for USD 161 billion (up 12% over 2014), or more than
56% of total new investment in renewable power and fuels.
Wind power followed with USD 109.6 billion, or 38.3% of the
total (up 4%). All technologies except solar and wind power
saw investment decline relative to 2014: investment in biomass
and waste-to-energy fell by 42% to USD 6 billion, small-scale
hydropower fell by 29% to USD 3.9 billion, biofuels fell by 35% to
USD 3.1 billion, geothermal energy fell by 23% to USD 2 billion,
and ocean energy fell by 42% to USD 215 million.

By the end of 2015, at least 146 countries had enacted some

kind of energy efficiency policy, and at least 128 countries had
one or more energy efficiency targets (not considering INDCs).
Some policies attempt to harness the synergy between energy
efficiency and renewable energy, as efficiency measures have the
potential to enable a more rapid increase in renewable energy's
share of global energy consumption.
Driven by structural changes and energy efficiency improvements
among other factors, global primary energy intensity declined
between 1990 and 2014 at an average annual rate of 1.5%, falling
by more than 30% overall during this period. However, the global
economy has expanded even more, and energy demand has
risen steadily.
In the transport and industrial sectors, global energy intensity
has declined over the past few decades. In the buildings sector,
the relatively small but growing market for more-efficient building
envelopes and materials is resulting in improved building energy
performance, particularly in developed countries. Total energy
demand for a number of appliance and equipment categories
(e.g., computers, fans, motors) continues to rise, despite
improvements in efficiency, due largely to a rapid increase in the
use of electricity-consuming products.
Energy efficiency improvements reflect, in part, increasing
investments. In 2013, global investment in energy efficiency
totalled an estimated USD 130 billion, including the enduser categories of buildings, transport and industry as well
as associated costs such as labour and taxes (but not fuel
switching). In September 2015, 70 financial institutions from
more than 20 countries including national, regional and global
banks committed to increasing financing for energy efficiency
investments.
Advancements also reflect increased use of support policies
and programmes. A growing number of countries is setting
energy efficiency targets and defining roadmaps; adopting new
policies and updating existing legislation to advance energy
efficiency; and expanding the coverage of standards and labelling
programmes, with developing and emerging countries playing an
increasing role in these trends. Several developed countries also
have introduced new financial incentives to channel additional
funding towards energy efficiency measures.

i Investment data do not include hydropower projects >50 MW, except where specified.
ii This number is for renewable power asset finance and small-scale projects. It differs from the overall total for renewable energy investment (USD 285.9
billion) provided elsewhere in the report because it excludes biofuels and some types of non-capacity investment, such as equity-raising on public markets
and development R&D. In addition, it does not include investment in hydropower projects >50 MW.

12

TOP FIVE COUNTRIES

Annual investment / net capacity additions / biofuel production in 2015
1
Investment in renewable power and fuels
(not including hydro > 50 MW)
Investment in renewable power
and fuels per unit GDP1

China

United States

Japan

United Kingdom India

Mauritania

Honduras

Uruguay

Morocco

Jamaica

Geothermal power capacity

Turkey

United States

Mexico

Kenya

Germany/Japan

Hydropower capacity

China

Brazil

Turkey

India

Vietnam

Solar PV capacity

China

Japan

United States

United Kingdom India

Concentrating solar thermal power

(CSP) capacity 2

Morocco

South Africa

United States

Wind power capacity

China

United States

Germany

Brazil

India

Solar water heating capacity

China

Turkey

Brazil

India

United States

Biodiesel production

United States Brazil

Germany

Argentina

France

Fuel ethanol production

United States Brazil

China

Canada

Thailand

Total capacity or generation as of end-2015

POWER
Renewable power (incl. hydro)

China

United States

Brazil

Germany

Canada

Renewable power (not incl. hydro)

China

United States

Germany

Japan

India

Renewable power capacity per capita

(among top 20, not including hydro3)

Denmark

Germany

Sweden

Spain

Portugal

United States China

Germany

Brazil

Japan

Geothermal power capacity

United States Philippines

Indonesia

Mexico

New Zealand

Hydropower capacity

China

Brazil

United States

Canada

Russia

Biopower generation
4

China

Brazil

Canada

United States

Russia

CSP capacity

Spain

United States

India

Morocco

South Africa

Solar PV capacity

China

Germany

Japan

United States

Italy

Solar PV capacity per capita

Germany

Italy

Belgium

Japan

Greece

Wind power capacity

China

United States

Germany

India

Spain

Wind power capacity per capita

Denmark

Sweden

Germany

Ireland

Spain

Solar water heating collector capacity5

China

United States

Germany

Turkey

Brazil

Solar water heating collector

capacity per capita 5

Austria

Cyprus

Israel

Barbados

Greece

China

Turkey

Japan

Iceland

India

Iceland

New Zealand

Hungary

Turkey

Japan

Hydropower generation

Geothermal heat capacity 6

Geothermal heat capacity per capita

Countries considered include only those covered by Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF); GDP (at purchasers prices) data for 2014 from World Bank. BNEF data include the following:
all biomass, geothermal and wind generation projects of more than 1 MW; all hydropower projects of between 1 and 50 MW; all solar power projects, with those less than 1 MW estimated
separately and referred to as small-scale projects or small distributed capacity; all ocean energy projects; and all biofuel projects with an annual production capacity of 1 million litres or
more. Small-scale capacity data used to help calculate investment per unit of GDP cover only those countries investing USD 200 million or more.
2
Only three countries brought concentrating solar thermal power (CSP) plants online in 2015, which is why no countries are listed in places 4 and 5.
3
Per capita renewable power capacity ranking considers only those countries that place among the top 20 worldwide for total installed renewable power capacity, not including hydropower.
Several other countries including Austria, Finland, Ireland and New Zealand also have high per capita levels of non-hydro renewable power capacity, with Iceland likely the leader among all
countries. Population data are for 2014 and are from the World Bank.
4
Country rankings for hydropower capacity and generation differ because some countries rely on hydropower for baseload supply whereas others use it more to follow the electric load and
to match peaks in demand.
5
Solar water heating collector rankings for total capacity and per capita are for year-end 2014 and are based on capacity of water (glazed and unglazed) collectors only. Data from IEA SHC.
Total capacity rankings are estimated to remain unchanged for year-end 2015.
6
Not including heat pumps.
Note: Most rankings are based on absolute amounts of investment, power generation capacity or output, or biofuels production; if done on a per capita, national GDP or other basis, the
rankings would be different for many categories (as seen with per capita rankings for renewable power, solar PV, wind power and solar water collector capacity).
1

RENEWABLES 2016 GLOBAL STATUS REPORT KEY FINDINGS

HEAT

13

POLICY LANDSCAPE
Number of Renewable Energy Policies and of Countries with Renewable Energy Policies, by Type, 20122015
120
120

114
114

112
112
100
100

102
102

100
100

80
80

66
66

64
64

63
63

60
60

Countries
Countries
withPower
Power
with
Policies
Policies

Countries
Countries
with
with
Transport
Transport
Policies
Policies

56
56
Countrieswith
with
Countries
Heatingand
and
Heating
Cooling(H&C)
(H&C)
Cooling
Policies
Policies

40
40

20
20

20
20

21
21

16
16

21
21

00
Power
Power

H&C
H&C

Transport
Transport

2012
2012

PowerPolicies
Policies
Power
Source:
REN21 Policy
Database

FIT
FIT
Tendering
Tendering
Netmetering
metering
Net

Power
Power

H&C
H&C

Transport
Transport

Power
Power

2013
2013

H&C
H&C

Transport
Transport

Power
Power

2014
2014

Heatingand
and
Heating
CoolingPolicies
Policies
Cooling
Technology-neutralobligation
obligation
Technology-neutral
Solarobligation
obligation
Solar

H&C
H&C

Transport
Transport

2015
2015

Transport
Transport
Biodiesel
Biodiesel
Ethanol
Ethanol
Non-blendmandate
mandate
Non-blend

Figure does not show all policy types in use. Countries are considered to have policies when at least one national or state/provincial-level policy is in place. Some
transport policies include both biodiesel and ethanol; in this case, the policy is counted once in each category (biodiesel and ethanol).

REGULATORY POLICIES IN THE

POWER SECTOR

COVER OVER 87 %
OF THE WORLD POPULATION,

WHILE REGULATORY POLICIES IN THE

HEATING AND COOLING

AND TRANSPORT SECTORS

COVER OVER

50% AND 73%,

R E S P E C T I V E L Y .
14

Source:
REN21 Policy
Database

Countries with Renewable Energy Power Policies, by Type, 2015

Power

More than one policy type

Feed-in tariff /
premium payment
Tendering
Net metering
No policy or no data
Figure XX. Countries with Renewable Energy Heating & Cooling Obligations, 20102015

Countries with Renewable Energy Heating and Cooling Obligations, 20102015

Heating and
Cooling

Countries that
added policies
in 20132015

Ghana added a
policy in 2013 but
removed it in 2014.

Countries with 20
policies in place
in 20102012

Transport

Countries that
added policies 11
in 20132015

Bolivia, the Dominican

Republic, the State of
Palestine and Zambia added
policies during 2010-2012
but removed them during
2013-2015.

Countries with 55
policies in place
in 20102012

RENEWABLES 2016 GLOBAL STATUS REPORT KEY FINDINGS

Countries with Renewable Energy Transport Obligations, 20102015

Countries are considered to have policies when at least one national or state/provincial-level policy is in place.

15

MAINSTREAMING RENEWABLES:
GUIDANCE FOR POLICY MAKERS
The universal nature of energy was emphasised in the international
political sphere in 2015. In September 2015, the United Nations
General Assembly adopted the Sustainable Development
Goal on ensuring access to sustainable energy for all (SDG
7). Furthermore, 195 countries adopted the Paris Agreement
to address climate change in December 2015, committing to
increasing renewables and energy efficiency as part of the goal
to limit global temperature rise to 2 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels.
There is a clear link between environmental protection, poverty
reduction, economic growth and technology development, and
this work on cross-cutting issues cannot be done in silos.
In order to meet the agreed targets, it will be necessary to work
across the various domains, including increasing dialogue, using
multi-stakeholder approaches and cross-cutting educational
programmes, and supporting interministerial collaboration.
National budgeting structures also must contain cross-cutting
aspects, and finance (and potentially other) ministries must
be included in climate and energy decision-making processes
alongside energy ministries.
Outside of the political sphere, civil society demonstrated its
overwhelming support for a transition to renewable energy,
including through the Popes environmental encyclical and the
Islamic, Hindu and Buddhist declarations on climate change, all
of which called on communities of faith to commit to a zero- or
low-carbon future. Pressure also is being placed on the morereluctant energy sector players. Even shareholders in fossil
fuel companies increasingly are pushing for the companies to
become greener. The private sector is taking advantage of the
falling costs of renewable energy technologies, and new initiatives
have emerged that include both public and private sector actors,
acknowledging that all have a role to play in the energy transition.
In parallel, increasing energy access for the 1.2 billion people
without access to electricity is an international priority. In order
to meet the target of limiting global temperature increase to
below 2 degrees Celsius, while at the same time increasing
energy access, remaining fossil fuel reserves will have to be
kept in the ground, and both renewable energy and energy
efficiency will have to be scaled up dramatically.

LEVEL THE PLAYING FIELD

Fossil fuel subsidies have to be phased out, as they distort
the true costs of energy and encourage wasteful spending and
increased emissions. Fossil fuel subsidies also present a barrier
to scaling up clean energy by: decreasing the costs of fossil
fuel-powered electricity generation, thereby blunting the costcompetitiveness of renewables; creating an incumbent advantage
that strengthens the position of fossil fuels in the electricity
system; and creating conditions that favour investments in fossil
fuel-based technologies over renewables.i Fossil fuel subsidies
were estimated to be over USD 490 billionii in 2014, compared
with subsidies of only USD 135 billion for renewables.iii
16

Policy design should financially discourage investments

in fossil fuels and nuclear, while also removing risk from
investments in renewable energy. This is crucial for scaling
up renewables, which can help close the energy access gap.
Although there has been some divestment from fossil fuels and
advances in renewable energy investment, fossil fuel and nuclear
investments continue to be favoured over clean energy in many
instances, particularly when short-term gains are the primary
consideration and long-term thinking is discounted. This can
occur when politicians think only in terms of the next election
cycle, or when companies attempt to provide shareholders with
quick returns. Furthermore, fossil fuels are more institutionalised
and have long-standing, well-financed lobbies.
Conversely, renewables are still less known and often suffer from
negative images and messages that are widely communicated,
such as the idea that incorporating large shares of renewables
is unrealistic due to variability, or that renewables are too
expensive. Simultaneously, renewable energy policy changes
and uncertainties undermine investor confidence, inhibiting
investment and deployment in some markets. Investors consider
all of these factors in their decision making, as do insurers
(demonstrated by the increasing presence of insurance addressing
climate change risks). Likewise, policy makers should think on
a long-term basis in order to increase investment in clean
energy and advance the energy transition in their countries.

THINK BEYOND THE POWER SECTOR

More emphasis needs to be placed on strengthening the role
of renewable energy in the heating and cooling and transport
sectors, as well as on sector coupling. Policy support for the
use of renewables in these sectors has advanced at a much slower
pace over the past 10 years than it has in the power sector; currently
renewable heat obligations exist in only 21 countries and biofuel
mandates exist in only 66 countries, compared to 114 countries
with renewable energy regulatory policies in the power sector. Not
only should policy support for renewables increase in general, but
interaction among the three sectors also needs to increase, and
national policies should strengthen local capacity, particularly in the
heating and cooling sector due to its distributed nature and to its
large reliance on local resources.
Policy makers need to remove barriers that are preventing
the increased share of renewables in heating and cooling
and transport. Current policy initiatives in both sectors are not
sufficient to drive the transition from fossil fuels. Policies in the
heating and cooling sector, in particular, have not progressed,
although heat represents nearly half of annual final energy
consumption. To resolve a structural problem of this magnitude,
both supply- and demand-side barriers to increasing the use of
renewables in both sectors must be addressed, such as lack of
trained personnel, costs to retrofit or upgrade, lack of awareness

PLAN FOR A DISTRIBUTED FUTURE

It is imperative to plan proactively for a future with a higher
amount of distributed energy generation. There is a growing
trend towards generation closer to the consumption point,
and the use of distributed renewable energy is rising in both
developing and developed countries. In developing countries, the
use of distributed renewables is primarily a tool for increasing
energy access, particularly in rural areas; in developed countries,
it is in response to a demand for self-sufficiency and a desire for
more-reliable electricity for those connected to the grid, with an
increasing number of prosumers emerging.
This change necessitates advanced planning that incorporates a
transition to new business models and several policy incentives,
while also taking into account the expansion of rooftop
solar, decreasing storage costs, increasing energy efficiency
measures, the development of community energy projects and
the involvement of a new smart technology industry. It also will
require a scaling up of infrastructure investments to maintain and
build out stable grid networks ready to integrate high shares of
variable renewables.
Comprehensive energy planning is needed to intensify
research, development and deployment of enabling
infrastructure for distributed resources,
including
strengthened electricity networks, energy storage, demand
response and flexible power plants. In industrialised countries,
a change in existing infrastructure needs to take place; in
developing countries, the concept of distributed resources
should be taken into account in planning and investment, rather
than defaulting to the traditional model of connecting everyone
to a centralised grid. To provide proper guidance to decision
makers, tools need to be developed that reflect these new
renewable energy realities and changing business models, and
that help to plan for the integration of distributed renewables in
developing and developed countries alike. Rather than resorting
to an either-or mentality, off-grid and on-grid solutions can be
pursued simultaneously.
The private sector also should plan for a decentralised
energy landscape, as the rapid and exponential growth of
renewable power generation and distributed resources comes
with both opportunities and challenges, resulting in both winners
and losers. In response to new competition and the disruption
of traditional business models, some utilities and electricity
suppliers are resisting change. Others, however, are repositioning
themselves and taking advantage of the renewables opportunity
by shifting more towards renewable assets and new markets and
embracing the idea of a much more decentralised future power
system, with less emphasis on fossil fuels.

ADAPT TO THE NEW, COMPLEX

ENERGY SYSTEM
Systemic, cross-cutting approaches are needed for scaling
up renewables. Policies often have focused on a single sector,
source or technology and were envisioned in the context of
centralised power (infra)structures, which no longer reflects the
reality of an increasingly complex energy system with increasing
crossover and decentralisation. Planning should occur across
sectors and across government departments and ministries;
policy design should be performed in close dialogue between
the public and private sectors; and policies at different levels of
government should be complementary and reinforcing.
Scaling up renewables is often less a problem of finance, and
more one of political will and of capacity; however, in many
developing countries, policies and government support still are
necessary to establish stable conditions, to ensure that finance
can reach projects and to enable private investors to engage.
In addition to robust policies that are adapted to the complexity
of the new energy system, strong leadership is necessary to
advance the energy transition, as ambitious policies require
political support, skilled direction and a vision for the future.
To support systemic, cross-cutting approaches to energy,
capacity needs to be built at both the political and the technical
levels. Training has to be made available for both current
and future decision makers, but also to build up the
technical workforce to expand technological and economic
solutions and to remove barriers that are standing in the way of
the energy transition. Such training could include streamlining
energy efficiency and renewable energy courses into university
curricula, and interdisciplinary/intersectoral internships that link
research, markets, business and the public sector.
Additionally, renewables should be considered alongside
energy efficiency and energy access. Just as the energy
transition cannot occur if all focus is on a single sector, it likewise
cannot be achieved without increases in both renewables and
energy efficiency. Greater synergies between the two are possible
in all sectors, and strengthening measures for one often will, in
turn, strengthen the other. To expand energy access, decision
makers also must make use of both renewable energy and energy
efficiency across all sectors. By building both renewables and
efficiency into energy access policies and programmes from the
beginning, available energy supply effectively can be increased,
and more-reliable supply can be provided at a lower cost.

i Richard Bridle and Lucy Kitson, The Impact of Fossil-Fuel Subsidies

on Renewable Electricity Generation (Winnipeg, Canada: International
Institute for Sustainable Development, December 2014),
https://www.iisd.org/gsi/sites/default/files/ffs_rens_impacts.pdf.
ii International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates include subsidies to fossil
fuels consumed by end-users and subsidies to consumption of electricity
generated by fossil fuels. IEA, World Energy Outlook 2015 (Paris: 2015), p. 96.
iii The value of fossil fuel subsidies fluctuates from year to year depending
on reform efforts, the consumption level of subsidised fuels, international
fossil fuel prices, exchange rates and general price inflation, from ibid.
See also OECD-IEA analysis of fossil fuels and other support,
http://www.oecd.org/site/tadffss/, viewed 3 March 2016. Subsidies for
renewables in 2014 included USD 112 billion in the power sector and
USD23billion for biofuels, from IEA, op. cit. this note, p. 27.

RENEWABLES 2016 GLOBAL STATUS REPORT KEY FINDINGS

or knowledge of renewable alternatives, reluctance to change

and low consumer confidence. These barriers and others can
and should be tackled through a suite of programmes and policy
support options, including public awareness campaigns, training
programmes and renewable energy incentive policies.

17

SELECTED FIGURES & TABLES

Figure 1. Estimated
Renewable
Share ofFinal
GlobalEnergy
Final Energy
Consumption, 2014
Estimated Renewable
Energy
ShareEnergy
of Global
Consumption,
2014

Fossil fuels

78.3%

Biomass/
geothermal/
solar heat

Modern renewables

10.3%

4.2%

All renewables

19.2%

Hydropower

3.9%

1.4% 0.8%

Traditional biomass

8.9%

Wind/solar/ Biofuels
biomass/
geothermal
power

2.5%

Nuclear power

Estimated Renewable Energy Share of Global Electricity Production, End2015

Non-renewables

76.3%

Hydropower

Wind

3.7%

Bio-power

2.0%

Solar PV

1.2%

16.6%

Renewable
electricity

23.7%

Geothermal,
CSP and
ocean
0.4%
Based on renewable generating capacity at year-end 2015.
Percentages do not add up internally due to rounding.

Based on renewable generating capacity at year-end 2015. Percentages do not add up internally due to rounding.

Renewable Power Capacities, in World, EU-28, BRICS and Top Seven Countries, End-2015
Gigawatts

Gigawatts

800

785
Gigawatts

700

200

199
Ocean power
CSP

600

Geothermal power

150

500

Bio-power
Solar PV

122

Wind power

400
100

276

300

92

262

200

50

43

36

33

32

India

Italy

Spain

100

0
World
Total

EU-28

BRICS

China

United
States

Germany

Japan

*not including hydropower

*Not including hydropower
(see Reference Table R2 for data including hydropower). The five BRICS countries are Brazil, the
Russian Federation, India, China and South Africa.

18

BIOMASS ENERGY
Shares of Biomass in Total Final Energy Consumption and in Final Energy Consumption by End-use Sector, 2014
Traditional biomass

Modern biomass

Non-biomass
2.8%

Non-biomass

2.0 %

7.2%

86%

Electricity

0.4%

%
100

25.3%

Transport

0.8%

75

4.3%

Heat industry

2.2%

50

Heat buildings:
traditional

Biomass

8.9%

14%

25

Heat buildings: modern

1.5%

Heating
buildings

Heating Transport
industry

Power

Global Bio-power Generation, by Country/Region, 20052015

Figure Z. Total Biofuels Production Billions of litres
Terawatt-hours / year

World Total

500

464 Terawatt-hours
Rest of World
China

400

South America
Asia

300

North America
European Union
(EU-28)

200

100

0
2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

Biofuels Global Production, Shares by Type and by Country/Region, 2015

4%

United States

HVO

46%
22%

Brazil

24%

Biodiesel

Rest of World

15%
EU

74%

Ethanol

15%

RENEWABLES 2016 GLOBAL STATUS REPORT KEY FINDINGS

2005

19

CONCENTRATING SOLAR THERMAL POWER

Concentrating
Solar Thermal
Global
Capacity,
by Country/Region,
Figure 18. Concentrating
SolarPower
Thermal
Power Global
Capacity,
by Country or Region,20052015
20052015
World Total

Gigawatts
5

4.8 Gigawatts
Rest of World
Spain

United States
3

0
2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

GEOTHERMAL POWER
Geothermal Power Capacity and Additions, Top 10 Countries and Rest of World, 2015
Figure XX. Geothermal Power Capacity and Additions, Top 10 Countries and Rest of World, 2014
Megawatts
4,000

+ 71

3,500

Added in 2015
2014 total

3,000
2,500

+0

2,000

+0

1,500

+ 53
1,000

+0

+0

+6

+0

+ 159

+ 20

+7

Iceland

Turkey

Kenya

Japan

500
0
United
States

Philippines Indonesia Mexico

Additions are net repowering and retirements.

Additions are net of repowering and retirements.

20

New
Zealand

Italy

Rest of
World

HYDROPOWER
Hydropower Global Capacity, Shares of Top Six
Countries and Rest of World, 2015

Figure 14. Hydropower Global Capacity, Shares of Top Six Countries and Rest of World, 2015
China

Brazil

8.6%

27.9%

United States

7.5%
Canada

7.4%
Russian
Federat.

Rest of World

4.5% 39.7%
India

4.4%

GLOBAL CAPACITY REACHED

1,064 GW
Hydropower Capacity and Additions, Top Six Countries for Capacity Added, 2015

Figure 15. . Hydropower Capacity and Additions, Top Nine Countries for Capacity Added, 2015
300

+ 16.1
Added in 2015
2014 total

Gigawatts
250

100

200

80

150

60

+ 2.5
+ 0.7

+ 1.9
100

40

+ 2.2
50

+ 1.0

20

+ 0.7

+ 0.6

+ 0.6

0
China

Brazil

Turkey

India

Vietnam Malaysia Canada Lao PDR Colombia

RENEWABLES 2016 GLOBAL STATUS REPORT KEY FINDINGS

Gigawatts

Additions are net of repowering and retirements.

21

SOLAR PV
Solar PV Global Capacity and Annual Additions, 20052015

Figure ??. Solar PV Global Additions and Total Capacity, 20052015

Gigawatts

World Total

250

227 Gigawatts
+50

Annual Additions

200

177
+40

Capacity
138
+38

150

100
+29

100

70
+30

50

5.1
+1.4

6.7
+1.4

2005

2006

9
+2.5

16
+6.5

40
+17

23
+8

0
2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

Solar PV CapacityFigure
and XX.
Additions,
Top 10and
Countries,
2015
Solar PV Capacity
Additions, Top
10 Countries, 2015
Gigawatts
50

+ 15.2
+ 1.5

40

Added in 2015

+ 11
30

2014 total

+ 7.3
+ 0.3

20

+ 3.7

10

+ 0.9

+ 0.1

+ 2.0

+ 0.9

Spain

India

Australia

0
China

22

Germany

Japan

United
States

Italy

United
Kingdom

France

50
GW
ADDED IN 2015

SOLAR THERMAL HEATING AND COOLING

Solar Water Heating Collectors Global Capacity, 20052015
Gigawatts-thermal
500

World Total

435 Gigawatts-thermal

Glazed collectors
Unglazed collectors

400

300

200

100
Source:
IEA SHC

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

40 GWth

ADDED IN 2015
Solar Water Heater Applications for Newly Installed Capacity, by Country/Region, 2014
Swimming pool
heating

Domestic hot water

systems for
single-family houses

Share
in %

Large domestic
hot water systems
(multi-family houses,
tourism and public
sector)

Solar combi systems

(domestic hot water
and space heating
for single- and
multi-family houses)

Others
(solar district heating,
solar process heat,
solar cooling)

80

60

40
Source:
IEA SHC

20

World

United
States /
Canada

Australia

Latin
America

SubSaharan
Africa

EU-28
and
Switzerland

Asia
Middle East
excl. China
and
North Africa

China

Turkey

RENEWABLES 2016 GLOBAL STATUS REPORT KEY FINDINGS

100

23

WIND POWER
Wind Power Global Capacity and Annual Additions, 20052015
Gigawatts

World Total

500

433 Gigawatts

Annual additions
Capacity

400

300

200

59
+12

100

121
+27

94
+20

74
+15

238
+41

198
+39

159
+38

318
+36

283
+45

370 +63
+52

0
2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

Market Shares of Top 10 Wind Turbine Manufacturers, 2015

Goldwind
(China)

Vestas
(Denmark)

12.5%

GE Wind
(USA)

11.8%

9.5%

Siemens (Germany)

Others

31.4%

8.0%

Gamesa (Spain)

5.4%

Enercon (Germany)

5.0%

United Power (China)

4.9%

Mingyang (China)

4.1%

Envision (China)

4.0%

CSIC Haizhuang (China) 3.4%

Source:
FTI
Consulting.

Total sales = ~63 GW.

Wind Power Capacity and Additions, Top 10 Countries, 2015

Gigawatts

150

+ 30.8
Added in 2015

120

2014 total

90

+ 8.6

60

+ 5.7
+ 2.6

30

+0

+1

+ 1.5

+ 1.1

+ 0.3

+ 2.8

Canada

France

Italy

Brazil

0
China

24

United
States

Germany

India

Spain

United
Kingdom

ENERGY EFFICIENCY
Countries with Energy Efficiency Policies and Targets, 2015

With policies and targets

2016

With policies, no targets

(or no data)
With targets, no policies
(or no data)
No policies/targets
or no data

Global Primary Energy Intensity and Total Primary Energy Demand, 19902014
Compound average
annual change

koe/USD2005

Mtoe
16,000

0.25

0.224

+1.9%

13,737

14,000

0.20

10,000

0.15

0.156

-1.5%

8,791

8,000

0.10

6,000

World primary energy

intensity (koe/USD2005)
World total primary
energy demand (Mtoe)

0.05

4,000
2,000

0
1990

1995

2000

Dollars are at constant purchasing power parities.

2005

2010

2014

RENEWABLES 2016 GLOBAL STATUS REPORT KEY FINDINGS

12,000

25

DISTRIBUTED RENEWABLE ENERGY

Market Penetration of DRE Systems in Selected Countries
Solar Lighting
Systems

Solar Home
Systems (SHS)

Biogas
Installations

Solar Lighting
Systems

Clean Cook
Stoves

Mexico

Peru

10%

About

of households
that cook with
biomass use
clean cook
stoves

of households
that cook with
biomass use
clean cook
stoves

26

Clean Cook
Stoves
Clean
Cook

Bangladesh

At least

At least

million

million

households
use clean
cook stoves

1.3

households
use clean
cook stoves

Nepal

More than

15%

of households
use clean
cook stoves

About

15-20% 530,000
pico-solar

Micro-Hydro
Systems
Solar Lighting
Systems
Solar
Lighting
Systems
Biogas
Installations

Biogas
Installations
Biogas
Installations
Micro-Hydro
Systems

Tanzania

1.2

30%

Solar Home
Systems (SHS)

Solar Home
Systems
(SHS)
Solar Home
Systems (SHS)
Clean Cook
Stoves

Kenya

of households
use off-grid
solar lighting
systems

Residential and
commercial
small-scale
SHS markets
represent

80%

of total solar
PV installed

Government
contract
awarded
in 2015
to install

500,000

SHS

More than
300,000 SHS
installed and

30,000
SHS sold
annually

products were
sold during
2014-2015
under Lighting
Global

10%

of population
is served
by SHS

20%

of population
served by
microhydropower

960,000

India

790,038

Tanzania

661,630

Ethiopia

1,100,000 764,900

Kenya
India

764,900

Kenya

Uganda
Number of Solar84,352
Lighting Systems

Ethiopia
China

500,000

Uganda
Nepal

84,352
500,000

in Top Five Countries, End-2014

Solar Home Systems

Solar Lighting Systems

Solar Home Systems

960,000
790,038
3,600,000

Bangladesh
Tanzania

1,100,000 764,900

India
Kenya

661,630

Bangladesh Biogas Installations

China
India

500,000

Nepal
Nepal

500,000
300,000

500,000

Nepal
Uganda

500,000
84,352

Kenya
Vietnam

Kenya

320,000

Bangladesh

1,100,000

China
India

500,000

Nepal
Nepal

500,000
300,000

Kenya
Vietnam

37,059

Biogas Installations
3,600,000

China

43,000,000

India
China

Clean Cook Stoves

300,000

Vietnam
Cambodia

4,494,681

182,805 2,964,717

Bangladesh
Kenya

37,059 2,565,954
2,411,966

India

37,059

43,000,000
12,989,744
4,750,000

Nepal
Ethiopia

4,750,000

320,000
182,805

Bangladesh

4,750,000

320,000
182,805

Solar Home Systems

India
China

43,000,000

Number of Installed Clean Cook Stoves

in Top Five Countries, 20122014

Number of Biogas Installations

in Top Five Countries, End-2014

Biogas Installations

3,600,000

1,100,000

India
China

China
Ethiopia

Bangladesh

661,630

Kenya
Number of Solar320,000
Home Systems

in Top Five Countries, End-2014

India

790,038
3,600,000

Tanzania
Bangladesh

Capital Raised by Off-Grid Renewable Energy Companies in 2015

Biogas Installations

China
India
Ethiopia
Nepal
Cambodia
Vietnam

Kenya
Bangladesh
India

Clean Cook Stoves

total in off-grid solar

companies in 2015

300,000

Million USD

43,000,000
80

12,989,744
4,750,000

USD
160 million
4,494,681

total in Pay As You Go

182,805 2,964,717
companies in 2015

60

37,059 2,565,954
2,411,966

China

12,989,744

Ethiopia
70
Cambodia

4,494,681
2,964,717

Kenya

2,565,954

India

2,411,966

40

31.5
20

15

15

Clean Cook Stoves

10.7

10

China
Ethiopia

12.6

12,989,744
4,494,681

Off Grid M-KOPA BBOXX Nova

Electric
Lumos

Fenix Mobisol GreenInterlight

national
Planet

PAYG companies attracted about 58% of the money raised by off-grid solar companies in 2015.

Cambodia

2,964,717

Kenya
2,565,954
THE
LARGEST
MARKET FOR OFF-GRID SOLAR PRODUCTS WAS
2,411,966

SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA (1.37 MILLION UNITS),

India

FOLLOWED BY SOUTH ASIA (1.28 MILLION UNITS SOLD)

RENEWABLES 2016 GLOBAL STATUS REPORT KEY FINDINGS

China

Clean Cook Stoves

USD 276 million

27

INVESTMENT FLOWS
Figure ??. Global
Investement inEnergy
Renewableby
Energy
by Technology,Developed
Developed and Developing
Countries, 2014
Global New Investment
inNew
Renewable
Technology,
and Developing
Countries, 2015
Billion USD

Change relative to 2014

81

Solar Power

+ 12%

80
42

Wind Power

+ 4%

67

Biomass &
Waste-toEnergy

3.9

42%

2.1
0.1

Small Hydro

29%

3.8
2.1

Biofuels
Geothermal
Power

Developed countries

0.7

Developing countries

35%
23%

1.3
0.2

Ocean

42%

0.03
0

20

40

60

80

Global New Investment in Renewable Power and Fuels, by Country/Region, 20042015

United States
44.1

37.0

35.3

40.6

34.7
23.9

United States

11.9
2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

Americas

2011

2012

12.8

2010

13.3

2009

12.0

2008

10.1

2007

(excl. United States & Brazil)

9.3

2006

5.5

5.0

2005

6.1

3.7

Billion USD

3.3

2013

2014

2015

Brazil

2013

7.1

2012

8.0

2011

4.4

2010

7.7

2009

10.2

2014

2015

Africa & Middle East

28

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

10.2

2015

8.3

2014

6.6

2013

12.5

2012

7.8

2011

Billion USD

8.8

2010

20

4.3

2009

7.9

1.6

2008

9.3

2.3

2007

10.2

1.8

2006

3.0

1.1

2005

4.1

0.8

20

Billion USD

12.8
12.

India

Africa & Middle East

5.6

2008

7.2

2007

7.9

2006

11.8

2005

5.2

Billion USD

3.1

20

11.4

Brazil

6.7

20

12.0

Americas (excl. United States & Brazil)

4.9

2005

3.0

20

29.1

40

35.5

49.0

Billion USD

33.2

60

2014

2015

Global New Investment in Renewable Power and Fuels, Developed, Emerging and
Developing Countries, 20042015
Billion USD

World total

279

130

131

142

106

2009

75

64

2008

46

60

87

114

123

108
83

73

151

164

150

112

156

191

179

154

136

182

100

234

239

Other developing countries

200

billion USD

257

China, India & Brazil

250

286

273

Developed countries

98

300

20

29

53

50

2005

2006

2007

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

Europe
Billion USD

89.0

20

Note: Data
include
government and
corporate R&D.
2005

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2012

2013

2014

2015

2004
2005

2006

2007

2015

2012

2013

47.4

2010

25.6
2009

62.0

2011

61.7

2010

39.6

20

38.8

47.6

30.2

23.8

40

16.7

2009

60

11.2

2008

Billion USD

8.3

2007

19.3

13.9

10.0

13.6

9.0

12.4

40

48.8

44.4

Billion USD

2006

2009

80

Asia & Pacific (excl. China & India)

2005

2008

87.83

100

20

2007

China

India

60

2006

2008

2011

2014

2015

RENEWABLES 2016 GLOBAL STATUS REPORT KEY FINDINGS

(excl. China
& India)

Source:
BNEF

102.9

Asia &
Pacific

33.3

China
40

48.8

46.9

60

60.0

66.8

80

82.7

81.8

100

62.0

120

113.4

Europe

122.9

Does not include investment in hydropower > 50 MW

29

JOBS IN RENEWABLE ENERGY

Estimated Direct and Indirect Jobs in Renewable Energy Worldwide, by Industry
World

China

Brazil

United
States

India

Japan

Bangladesh

European Unionj
Germany

France

Rest of EU

38

21

84

23

35

47

149

20

162

10

19

49

48

214

THOUSAND JOBS
Solar PV

2,772

1,652

Liquid biofuels

1,678

71

821

Wind power

1,081

507

41

Solar heating/
cooling

939

743

41d

Solid biomassa,g

822

241

Biogas

382

209

Hydropower
(small-scale)b

204

100

Geothermal
energya

160

35

14

CSP
Total

8,079h

3,523

12

918

194

103

377

277

35

88

48

10

75

0.7

152e

58

769

127

0.1

85

48

14

12

12

31

17

31

55

0.7
416

388

141

355j

5
170

644k

Note: Figures provided in the table are the result of a comprehensive review of primary (national entities such as ministries, statistical agencies, etc.) and
secondary (regional and global studies) data sources and represent an ongoing effort to update and refine available knowledge. Totals may not add up due
to rounding.
Power and heat applications (including heat pumps in the case of the EU). b Although 10 MW is often used as a threshold, definitions are inconsistent across
countries. c About 268,400 jobs in sugar cane and 190,000 in ethanol processing in 2014; also includes 200,000 indirect jobs in equipment manufacturing and
162,600 jobs in biodiesel in 2015. d Equipment manufacturing and installation jobs. e Biomass power direct jobs run to only 15,500. f Includes 227,562 jobs for ethanol
and 49,486 jobs for biodiesel in 2015. g Traditional biomass is not included. h The total for World is calculated by adding the individual totals of the technologies, with
3,700 jobs in ocean energy, 11,000 jobs in renewable municipal and industrial waste and 14,000 jobs in others (jobs that cannot be broken down by technology).
i
All EU data are from 2014, and the two major EU countries are represented individually. j Includes 8,300 jobs in publicly funded R&D and administration; not broken
down by technology. k Includes 8,000 jobs in renewable municipal and industrial waste and 3,700 jobs in ocean energy.
a

Jobs in Renewable Energy

Bioenergy

(biomass, biofuels,
biogas)

Geothermal
Hydropower
(small-scale)i

Solar Energy

(solar PV, CSP,

solar heating/cooling)

Wind Power

Source:
IRENA

ii

30

= 50,000 jobs

World
Total:

8.1 Million Jobs

i - Employment
for large-scale
hydropower
incomplete
not included
This sidebar
is drawninformation
from IRENA,
Renewable
Energyisand
Jobs and
Annual
Review 2016. Data are principally for 20142015, with dates varying by country and
technology, including some instances where only dated information is available.

IRENA defines large-scale hydropower as projects above 10 MW. Definitions may vary across IRENA member countries. Projects below 10 MW are
considered as small-scale hydropower.

PRODUCTION & AUTHORING TEAM

RESEARCH DIRECTION AND
LEAD AUTHORSHIP

CHAPTER AUTHORS

RESEARCH SUPPORT

Fabiani Appavou

Janet L. Sawin,
Lead Author and Content Editor
(Sunna Research)

Adam Brown

Stefanie E. Di Domenico,
Daniele Kielmanowicz
(REN21 Secretariat)

Kristin Seyboth
(KMS Research and Consulting)
Freyr Sverrisson (Sunna Research)

PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND

GSR COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT
(REN21 SECRETARIAT)
Rana Adib
Hannah E. Murdock

Brbel Epp (solrico)

Aarth Saraph (United Nations

Environment Programme UNEP)

Anna Leidreiter
(World Future Council WFC)
Christine Lins (REN21 Secretariat)
Hannah E. Murdock (REN21 Secretariat)

COMMUNICATION SUPPORT

Evan Musolino

Laura E. Williamson,
Rashmi Jawahar
(REN21 Secretariat)

Ksenia Petrichenko, Timothy C. Farrell,

Thomas Thorsch Krader,
Aristeidis Tsakiris (Copenhagen Centre
on Energy Efficiency)
Janet L. Sawin (Sunna Research)

EDITING, DESIGN AND LAYOUT

Lisa Mastny, Editor

Kristin Seyboth
(KMS Research and Consulting)

weeks.de Werbeagentur GmbH, Design

Jonathan Skeen
Benjamin Sovacool
(Aarhus University/University of Sussex)
Freyr Sverrisson (Sunna Research)

PRODUCTION
REN21 Secretariat, Paris, France

SPECIAL ADVISOR
Adam Brown

DISCLAIMER:

PHOTO CREDITS
page 14

Power plant using renewable solar energy,

zhangyang13576997233 | shutterstock

page 20 Solar panels against blue sky,

gui jun peng | shutterstock
page 22 Hoover Dam, Photoquest | Dreamstime.com
page 23 Lgumkloster District heating, Denmark,
Savo-Solar
page 24 Aerial view of wind farm at sunset in spring,
Lithuania, Vikau | Dreamstime.com
page 25 Modern LED closeup,
Kutt Niinepuu | Dreamstime.com

page 26 Artisan potter making a 'clean cook stove' in

Tanzania, Russell Watkins l Department for
International Development
Solar Lantern, Christopher, Zambia,
Patrick Bentley, SolarAid
Barefoot solar engineers, Abbie Trayler-Smith l
Panos Pictures l Department for International
Development
Solar panel on roof, Azuri Technologies
Dam and bridge at Usina Granja Velha, Brazil,
built by CRELUZ, Ashden
Small hydro-electric alternator for an African town,
Ren Paul Gosselin | Dreamstime.com

RENEWABLES 2016 GLOBAL STATUS REPORT KEY FINDINGS

REN21 is committed to
mobilising global action to
meet SE4All objectives.

REN21 releases issue papers and reports to emphasise the importance of renewable energy
and to generate discussion on issues central to the promotion of renewable energy. While
REN21 papers and reports have benefited from the considerations and input from the REN21
community, they do not necessarily represent a consensus among network participants on any
given point. Although the information given in this report is the best available to the authors
at the time, REN21 and its participants cannot be held liable for its accuracy and correctness.

31

KEY FINDINGS

2016
RENEWABLES 2016
GLOBAL STATUS REPORT
For further details and access to the full report
and references, visit www.ren21.net/gsr

www.ren21.net

Printed on 100 % recycled paper

REN21 Secretariat
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ISBN
ISBN 978-3-9815934-7-1
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