IEA: Uncertainty May Slow Renewables

ISTREATOR, Ill. (DTN) -- The expansion of renewable energy would slow over the next five years unless policy uncertainty is diminished, the International Energy Agency said Thursday (8/28) in its third annual medium-term Renewable Energy Market Report.

The roles of biofuels for transport and renewable heat are increasing, though at slower rates than renewable electricity. Uncertainty over policy support for biofuels is rising in the European Union and the United States, slowing expectations for production growth and threatening the development of the advanced biofuels industry at a time when the first commercial plants are just coming online.

"The annual report highlights the potential energy security implications of energy use for heat, which accounts for more than half of world final energy consumption and is dominated by fossil fuels," IEA said.

However, the contribution of renewables to meet heating and cooling needs remains underdeveloped, with more limited policy frameworks compared with the electricity and transport sectors.

Although modern renewable energy sources are expected to grow by almost 25% to 2020, their share in energy use for heat rises to only 9%, up from 8% in 2013.

Power generation from renewable sources such as wind, solar and hydro grew strongly in 2013, reaching almost 22% of global generation, and was on par with electricity from gas, whose generation remained relatively stable.

The report is part of a series of annual reports the IEA devotes to each of the main primary energy sources: oil, gas, coal, renewable energy and energy efficiency.

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(CZ)

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