To achieve a zero-carbon power system by 2050, nearly all electricity will need to come from renewable technologies. Achieving this will require large-scale renewable energy capacity additions. To track momentum toward this goal, it is critical to monitor annual capacity additions, which represent new installations of renewable power.
Annual capacity additions of renewables are generally increasing. Over the past decade, over 120 gigawatts (GW) of new renewable power capacity have been added each year, with these capacity additions growing at a rate of 11% per year. In 2022 alone, 292 GW of new renewable power was added, driven primarily by the expansion of renewable energy projects in Asia, but also by increasing deployment in Europe and South America.
In 2021, the capacity additions slowed slightly. Although capacity additions rose in 2022, the small setback in 2021 highlights how major global instabilities such as the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine can inhibit progress.