Disentangling the 2030 Global Renewable energy target

Disentangling the 2030 Global Renewable energy target

News: The presidency of the 28th Conference of Parties (COP28) of the United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change (UNFCCC), to be held in Dubai. It has called for agreement on a global target of tripling renewable
energy capacity from current levels by 2030.

What is the current status of renewable energy?
• Global installed capacity of renewable energy sources (RES)(2021)for electricity generation - It was 3026 GigaWatts (GW), or 39% of the total capacity from all sources.
• In total electricity generation the contribution by RES was only 28%. More than half the RE generation was from hydropower, while solar (13%) and wind (23%). It accounted for about 36% of RE generation, that is 10% of generation from all sources.
• The COP28 proposal aims to triple global renewable energy capacity to about 9000 GW by 2030.

India’s Renewable energy status:
• Electricity consumption in India grew annually at 6.3% between 2010 and 2019.
• At COP26, Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared a target for India to reach 500GW from non-fossil fuel sources by 2030.

What are the major issues regarding global energy targets?
• Tripling the renewable energy capacity by 2030 from the 2021 levels would mean installing around 6000 GW of renewable capacity in a short span, surpassing the total energy capacity of 2021.
• Most renewable energy generation comes from hydropower, but constructing new hydro plants may exceed the 2030 timeline.
• The origin and analysis backing the COP28 renewable energy target are not fully transparent.
• The proposed targets could unfairly place higher demands on developing countries like India, while developed nations like the US and EU might contribute minimally based on their current growth rates and phase-out plans.

What is the need of the hour?
• The burden of the renewable energy target should be distributed fairly among countries.
• Rationale behind COP28 renewable energy target needs greater transparency.
• Major economic powers such as U.S.A and EU, should commit to phase out fossil fuels and adopt concrete renewable energy targets helping developing nations achieve swift transition.