Global additions of renewables hit 295 GW in 2022

The world has added 295 GW of renewable power generation capacity in 2022, a record-high volume but three times less than what would be needed annually to limit global warming, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) says.

The sector agency released statistics on Tuesday, showing that global renewable energy capacity amounted to 3,372 GW at the end of last year. The new deployments in 2022 represented a 9.6% year-on-year increase, with renewables being responsible for 83% of total power capacity additions around the world.

“This continued record growth shows the resilience of renewable energy amidst the lingering energy crisis,” said IRENA’s Director-General Francesco La Camera, adding that the strong growth in the sector is a result of soaring demand and favourable policies. Still, he pointed out that annual additions in the sector need to be three times the current level by 2030 in order to put the world on track to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

Looking at 2022 figures, China had the largest contribution to the annual renewable energy deployments with 141 GW of new capacity going online. Europe brought live 57.3 GW of new renewable power plants, followed by North America with 29.1 GW. South America came next with 18.2 GW of new installations. Africa and Oceania added 2.7 GW and 5.2 GW, respectively.

The highest increase was registered in the Middle East where annual deployments rose by 12.8% on a yearly basis with the commissioning of 3.2 GW of capacity.

By technology, solar and wind dominated the world’s renewables expansion, jointly accounting for 90% of all net additions in 2022. Solar was the major driver with 191 GW added, accounting for a 22% increase on a yearly basis. Details are available in the table.

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