The total amount of renewable energy capacity installed in the Asia-Pacific region excluding hydropower is set to hit 535.2 gigawatts by the end of the decade according to the latest research from GlobalData.
According to GlobalData’s Renewable Energy Market in Asia-Pacific to 2020 report, these strong gains in renewable energy in the region will be driven by the rapid growth of the region’s late developing economies. China, expected to become the world’s largest economy on a purchasing power parity basis in under a decade, will lead capacity increases. The Middle Kingdom is pushing hard to expand its usage of clean, renewable energy sources as the area’s dependence on coal-fired plants for electricity has already created severe air pollution problems in its major cities, while its net power demand is sure to increase as the area continues to experience economic growth.
By the end of China’s 12th Five Year Plan, covering the period from 2011 – 2015, China will hit 130 gigawatts in renewable energy capacity. China hopes that 15 per cent of the country’s electricity will be generated from renewable sources by the 2020, and in 2013 alone plans to add a total of 49 gigawatts in renewable energy capacity, of which 18 gigawatts will be derived from wind power and 10 gigawatts from solar power. Other leading economies throughout the Asia-Pacific region will also make major contributions to growth in the usage of renewable energy, including Australia, India, Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines and Thailand.
GlobalData expects the cumulative renewable installed capacity for China, India, Japan, Australia, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines to rise at a compound annual growth rate of 12.2 per cent during the period from 2012 and 2020. Throughout the region as a whole, the percentage of power generated by renewable energy sources is seen by GlobalData as rising from 12.1 per cent in 2011 to nearly 20 per cent in 2020.
