Renewable energy industry

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Worldwide installed wind power capacity and prediction 1997-2010, Source: WWEA. Note that the capacity refers to the power production of the wind turbines if each were running at maximum capacity (i.e., maximum wind velocity); the actual power produced is less than this.
Worldwide installed wind power capacity and prediction 1997-2010, Source: WWEA. Note that the capacity refers to the power production of the wind turbines if each were running at maximum capacity (i.e., maximum wind velocity); the actual power produced is less than this.

The present-day renewable energy industry is an energy industry focusing on "new" and "appropriate" renewable energy technologies, which excludes large-scale hydro-electricity. Investors worldwide have paid much greater attention to this emerging renewable energy industry in recent years. In many cases, this has translated into rapid renewable energy commercialization and considerable industry expansion. The wind power industry and solar photovoltaics (PV) industry provide good examples of this.

Leading renewable energy companies include Acciona, Enercon, Gamesa, GE Energy, Q-Cells, Sharp Solar, SunOpta, Suntech, and Vestas.[1] Several renewable energy companies have recently gone through high profile Initial Public Offerings, including Aventine (USA), First Solar (USA), Iberdrola (Spain), and VeraSun Energy (USA).[2]

Contents

[edit] Overview

By mid-2007, some 140 publicly-traded renewable energy companies worldwide (or renewable energy divisions of major companies) each had a market capitalization greater than $40 million. (The number of companies in this category jumped from about 85 in mid-2006.) The estimated total market capitalization of these companies and divisions was more than $100 billion in mid-2007.[2]

During 2006/2007, several renewable energy companies went through high profile Initial Public Offerings (IPOs), resulting in market capitalization near or above $1 billion. These corporations included the solar PV companies First Solar (USA), Trina Solar (USA), Centrosolar (Germany), and Renesola (U.K.), wind power company Iberdrola (Spain), and U.S. biofuels producers VeraSun Energy, Aventine, and Pacific Ethanol.[2]

[edit] Wind power

In 2007, worldwide capacity of wind-power was 93.8 GW, of which 19.7 GW was capacity added in 2007. [3]. This installed capacity produced 200,000 GW-hrs of electricity per year, corresponding to about a 23% capacity factor (ratio of actual power produced divided by peak power; dependant on the wind velocity).

[edit] Companies

Vestas V80 wind turbines
Vestas V80 wind turbines
See also: List of wind turbine manufacturers

Currently three quarters of global wind turbine sales come from only four turbine manufacturing companies: Vestas, Gamesa, Enercon, and GE Energy.[4] With a 23% market share, Vestas is the largest supplier of modern wind turbines. Vestas has installed some 35,000 wind turbines in 63 countries on five continents. Vestas wind turbines generate more than 60 million MWh of energy per year: enough electricity to supply millions of households. Vestas is a Danish company which employs 14,000 people globally and, in 2003, merged with the Danish wind turbine manufacturer NEG Micon.[5]

Gamesa, founded in 1976 with headquarters in Bilbao, Spain, is currently the world's second largest wind turbine manufacturer,[1][6] after Vestas, and it is also a major builder of wind farms. Gamesa’s main markets are within Europe, the US and China. In 2006, Europe accounted for 65 percent of Gamesa’s sales, of which 40 percent were within Spain.[4]

In 2004, German company Enercon installed a total of 1,288 MW of wind power and had around 16% of the global market share. Enercon constructed production facilities in Brazil in 2006, and has extended its presence there, as well as in the more traditional markets of Germany, India, Austria, UK, Canada and the Netherlands.[1]

GE Energy has installed over 5,500 wind turbines and 3,600 hydro turbines, and its installed capacity of renewable energy worldwide exceeds 160,000 MW.[7] GE Energy bought out Enron Wind in 2002 and also has nuclear energy operations in its portfolio.[8]

Acciona Energy is a leader in the renewable energy sector and the company’s mission is to "demonstrate the technical and economic viability of a sustainable energy model".[9] Acciona Energy is the largest developer, owner and operator of wind farms in the world, with 164 wind farms in nine countries representing over 4,500 MW of wind power installed or under construction.[9]

[edit] Trends

Wind power capacity increased more than any other renewable power technology in 2007, with an estimated 21 GW added, which represented a 28 percent increase over 2006.[10] In 2007, the wind power industry saw an increase in wind manufacturing facilities in the United States, India, and China, which broadened the manufacturing base away from traditional markets in Europe. 2007 showed a boost for China and India, which export components and turbines.[2]

Offshore wind power installations are slowly emerging, due partly to higher costs and maintenance levels compared with on-shore markets. Recent years have seen several hundred megawatts added annually, mostly in Europe.[10]

[edit] Photovoltaics

See also: Photovoltaic power stations

[edit] Companies

See also: List of photovoltaics companies
Monocrystalline solar cell
Monocrystalline solar cell

The top five global photovoltaic producers in 2006 were Sharp (Japan), Q-cells (Germany), Kyocera (Japan), Suntech (China), and Sanyo (Japan). Together, these five companies accounted for almost half of world production.[2]

Sharp Solar produces both single and multi-crystalline solar cells and for some years has been the world's leading manufacturer of photovoltaic modules. Sharp's solar modules are used for many applications, from satellites to lighthouses, and from industrial applications to residential use. Sharp Corporation began researching solar cells in 1959 with mass production first beginning in 1963. Sharp manufactures PV modules near Wrexham and production capacity amounted to 324 MW in 2004.[11][12] Today, Sharp manufactures more than a quarter of global solar PV output, with annual revenues of more than $1 billion from that business. Commercial projects completed through Sharp’s authorised distributor, Solarcentury, have included supplying PV panels as part of a complete solar power generation system on a new petrol station in Nottinghamshire, and a large social housing project in King’s Cross, London.[12] The company’s president, Katsuhiko Machida, predicts that the cost of generating power from photovoltaics could fall by half between 2006 and 2010.[13]

Q-Cells, the German solar cell manufacturer, went from zero manufacturing output in 2000 to being the world’s second largest manufacturer of solar cells in 2006. Q-Cells planned to manufacture about 250 MW of solar cells in 2007.[13] Q-cells is based in Thalheim, Germany, and employs more than 1,000 people.[14][15]

Kyocera operates solar module manufacturing factories in Japan, China, the Czech Republic and Mexico, and has established local production and supply systems in Japan, Europe, the US and China. Kyocera recently secured silicon supply agreements to allow a significant expansion to 500 MW annually by March 2011, about triple its 2007 output.[16]

Suntech has been expanding rapidly in the past few years and is poised to become the largest supplier of photovoltaic modules in the world in 2008, with year-end capacity of 1 gigawatt, almost double the 2007 output. Headquartered in Wuxi, China, Suntech was ranked the world's third largest solar module producer in 2007, with annual capacity of 540 megawatts. Suntech was established in 2001 and was listed on New York Stock Exchange in December 2005.[17]

BP has been involved in solar power since 1973 and its subsidiary, BP Solar, has production facilities in the United States, Spain, India and Australia, employing a workforce of over 2,000 people worldwide.[18]

[edit] Trends

During 2007, investment in new solar PV manufacturing facilities was strong in Europe, Japan, China, Chinese Taipei, and the United States, with many new operations reported. The solar PV industry also saw an increase in silicon production facilities around the world, which was a response to silicon feedstock shortages in recent years. Solar PV manufacturers were signing long-term contracts to ensure a growing supply, and many silicon manufacturers are announcing plans to build new plants. By the end of 2007, more than 70 silicon manufacturing facilities were being constructed or planned worldwide.[19]

[edit] Concentrating solar power

The 11MW PS10 solar power tower near Seville in Spain.
The 11MW PS10 solar power tower near Seville in Spain.

Since 2004 there has been renewed interest in concentrating solar power (CSP) and three plants were completed during 2006/2007: the 64 MW Nevada Solar One, a 1 MW trough plant in Arizona, and the 11 MW PS10 solar power tower in Spain. Three 50 MW trough plants were under construction in Spain at the end of 2007 with ten additional 50 MW plants planned. In the United States, utilities in California and Florida have announced plans (or contracted for) at least eight new projects totaling more than 2,000 MW. Companies involved in new projects include BrightSource Energy[20], Abengoa Solar, Acciona, Ausra, Iberdrola, Solar Millennium, and Stirling Energy Systems.[21]

[edit] Biofuels

Information on pump, California.
Information on pump, California.

In the ethanol fuel industry, the United States dominated, with 130 operating ethanol plants in 2007, and production capacity of 26 billion liters/year (6.87 billion gallons/year), a 60 percent increase over 2005. Another 84 plants were under construction or undergoing expansion, and this will result in a doubled production capacity. Brazil continued its ethanol expansion plans which began in 2005.[19]

The biodiesel industry opened many new production facilities during 2006/2007 and continued expansion plans in several countries. New biodiesel capacity appeared throughout Europe, including in Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.[19]

Commercial investment in second-generation biofuels began in 2006/2007, and much of this investment went beyond pilot-scale plants. The world’s first commercial wood-to-ethanol plant began operation in Japan in 2007, with a capacity of 1.4 million liters/year. The first wood-to-ethanol plant in the United States is planned for 2008 with an initial output of 75 million liters/year.[19]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c Top of the list, Renewable Energy World, 2 January 2006.
  2. ^ a b c d e REN21 (2008). Renewables 2007 Global Status Report (PDF) p. 18.
  3. ^ World Wind Energy Association Press release, accessed June 5, 2008
  4. ^ a b Lewis, Joanna I. (2007). A Comparison of Wind Power Industry Development Strategies in Spain, India and China (PDF)
  5. ^ Vestas (2007). Vestas results Retrieved on 4 March 2008.
  6. ^ World Wind Energy Association (2007). Acquisition of REpower by Suzlon is important step in international cooperation Retrieved on 22 January 2008.
  7. ^ GE Energy (undated). GE Energy Retrieved on 22 January 2008.
  8. ^ Nuke Producer GE Energy Buys Solar Producer AstroPower Social Funds, 6 April 2004. Retrieved on 22 January 2008.
  9. ^ a b Waubra Wind Farm (2007). Acciona Energy Retrieved on 22 January 2008.
  10. ^ a b REN21 (2008). Renewables 2007 Global Status Report (PDF) p. 10.
  11. ^ Advanced Energy solutions (undated). Sharp Solar Modules Retrieved on 22 January 2008.
  12. ^ a b Sharp (undated). Sharp Solar celebrates five years as world number one Retrieved on 22 January 2008.
  13. ^ a b Solar Energy: Scaling Up Manufacturing and Driving Down Costs (PDF) p. 35.
  14. ^ Q-Cells CEO says has ‘very positive’ 2nd quarter Kahleej Times, 27 June 2007. Retrieved on 22 January 2008.
  15. ^ Evergreen Solar and Q-Cells Announce Partnership with REC Renewable Energy Access, 29 November 2005. Retrieved on 22 January 2008.
  16. ^ Land of Giants: PV Players and Prospects Renewable Energy World, 13 March 2008. Retrieved on 18 April 2008.
  17. ^ Bright Future Seen For Suntech Power Forbes.com, 27 February 2008. Retrieved on 4 March 2008.
  18. ^ BP Solar (undated).Welcome to BP Solar Retrieved on 23 January 2008.
  19. ^ a b c d REN21 (2008). Renewables 2007 Global Status Report (PDF) p. 19.
  20. ^ BrightSource / Luz II Dedicate Negev Solar Energy Development Center. Cleantech Investing in Israel (2008-06-12). Retrieved on 2008-06-12.
  21. ^ REN21 (2008). Renewables 2007 Global Status Report (PDF) p. 12 and 19.

[edit] Bibliography

  • International Energy Agency (2006). World Energy Outlook 2006: Summary and Conclusions, OECD, 11 pages.
  • International Energy Agency (2007). Renewables in global energy supply: An IEA facts sheet, OECD, 34 pages.
  • REN21 (2008). Renewables 2007 Global Status Report, Paris: REN21 Secretariat, 51 pages.
  • United Nations Environment Program (2006). Changing climates: The Role of Renewable Energy in a Carbon-constrained World, January, 33 pages.
  • United Nations Environment Programme and New Energy Finance Ltd. (2007). Global Trends in Sustainable Energy Investment 2007: Analysis of Trends and Issues in the Financing of Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency in OECD and Developing Countries, 52 pages.
  • Worldwatch Institute and Center for American Progress (2006). American energy: The renewable path to energy security, 40 pages.

[edit] External links

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