2023: Peak Year for Renewable Energy – Report by Ember in London

Billions of people use different forms of energy every day and 2023 will be the peak year for renewable energy, according to a report published this week by think tank Ember in in London.

For the first time, 30% of the world’s electricity generation came from clean energy sources as the number of solar and wind farms continues to grow rapidly.

Of the types of clean energy produced last year, just like in previous years, hydroelectric power plants produced the majority. However, droughts in India, China, North America and Mexico pushed hydropower to five-year lows. Studies show that climate change is causing droughts to become faster and more severe.

People used more electricity last year than ever before – about 2% more. That’s an increase of roughly what Canada eats in a year.

Part of this new demand came from heat pumps, which are an efficient way to heat and cool buildings. Also, more energy has been consumed globally by electric cars and other technologies that provide solutions to climate change.

Another increase was the demand for electricity to power new data centers and air conditioners as many parts of the world are getting hotter.

Solar energy accounted for the majority of new clean energy last year. Last year was the 19th year in a row that solar energy was the fastest growing source of electricity.

The largest increase in solar installations occurred at the end of the year, and the report predicts an even bigger jump in 2024.

At the same time, the report noted that some countries continued to burn coal to compensate for the loss of hydropower they experienced when the drought caused reservoirs to dry up. This is an example of a vicious cycle, where climate change leads to increased use of climate-changing materials.

Despite the clean energy boom, fossil fuels still made up the majority of the world’s electricity generation last year, accounting for 1% of global energy