Growth in renewables bucks global slowdown

By Fiona Harvey in London
Published: July 2 2008 03:01

Investment in renewable energy increased at a quickening pace last year in spite of the cooling in key economies.
Renewables and other forms of low-carbon energy bucked the economic slowdown, with nearly $150bn (€95bn, £75bn) invested in the technologies worldwide, according to a report from the United Nations Environment Programme.

Achim Steiner, executive director of UNEP, said: “[This] is a true cause for hope that rising concerns over climate change and energy prices are leading to a fundamental change in the way we produce and use energy.”
He said: “These figures show the finance sector’s forward view may be better at seeing the disruptive change of new technology.”
Last year’s total was an increase of 60 per cent on the previous year’s $93bn. The pace of growth was slightly higher than the 57 per cent increase in investment from $59bn in 2005.
Investment in low-carbon energy has risen more than fivefold since 2004, when it stood at $33.4bn globally.
The impact of the cooling economy was felt in early 2008, with fewer new public listings and the stock prices of sustainable energy companies down by about 18 per cent, according to the report, Global Trends in Sustainable Energy Investment 2008.
However, investors quickly recovered their nerve, probably under the influence of rising oil prices. Investment in low-carbon energy for the first half of 2008 was greater than in the first half of last year.
The report’s authors said this showed the sector was resilient to the slowdown elsewhere in the economy.
Europe took the lion’s share of renewables investment last year, followed by the US. But China, India and Brazil also saw an increasing share of investment.
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2008