A few days ago, Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) issued a report stating that although the global economy was hit hard by the new crown pneumonia epidemic in the first half of this year, investment in the offshore wind power sector was unprecedented, with investment soaring 319% year-on-year.
The scale of investment is eye-catching
Statistics from the report show that from January to June this year, 28 offshore wind farms were added globally, with a total investment of 35 billion U.S. dollars, which is more than four times the investment in the same period last year. At the same time, this figure also exceeds that of the whole of last year. The total investment.
The report pointed out that in the first half of this year, the scale of investment in a single new offshore wind power project was also considerable. The Hollandse Kust Zuid offshore wind farm planned by the Swedish energy giant Vattenfall has a total investment of 3.9 billion US dollars. The investment in the Seagreen project in Scottish waters also reached US$3.8 billion. In addition, in the first half of this year, China's offshore wind power market was also very active, with 17 new offshore wind power projects in the same period. Among them, the total investment in the Yangjiang Shapa offshore wind power project developed and constructed by Guangdong Yudean Group reached 1.8 billion US dollars.
The report shows that due to the impact of the new crown pneumonia epidemic, the growth of investment in onshore wind power and photovoltaic projects has slowed significantly in the first half of this year, and the “contrarian” growth of investment in the offshore wind power sector has attracted attention.
BNEF analyst Albert Cheung pointed out: "We had expected that the new crown pneumonia epidemic in the first half of this year would have a negative impact on global renewable energy investment, and the progress of financing and project auctions may be delayed. In photovoltaics and onshore wind power. , We have all seen this trend, but the global renewable energy overall still maintains a tough growth, mainly because of the rapid growth of investment in the offshore wind power sector."
Support the growth of renewable energy
BNEF's analysis shows that the main reason for the huge growth of the offshore wind power industry this year is still the decline in the cost of electricity and the rapid iteration of large megawatt wind turbines. It is understood that since 2012, offshore wind power development costs have dropped by more than 2/3.
According to the BNEF report, in the first half of this year, the total global investment in the field of renewable energy (excluding large hydropower) was US$132.4 billion, a year-on-year increase of approximately 5%. With the exception of offshore wind power, most industries in the renewable energy sector have experienced varying degrees of investment decline.
During the reporting period, investment in the photovoltaic sector fell by 12% year-on-year to US$54.7 billion; the total investment in onshore wind power fell by 20% year-on-year to US$37.5 billion. In addition, in the first half of this year, global investment in biomass and waste-to-energy industries also dropped by 34% to US$3.7 billion; investment in small hydropower fell by 14% to US$576 million; investment in biofuels fell sharply year-on-year A reduction of 82% is only US$250 million.
The report believes that, on the whole, offshore wind power has become an important support for the promotion of global renewable energy development in the first half of this year. It is worth mentioning that another renewable energy industry that has seen soaring is geothermal energy. In the first half of this year, new investment soared by 594% year-on-year to US$676 million.
Angus McCrone, editor-in-chief of BNEF, said: "The competitiveness of renewable energy has been greatly improved, and investors also hope to use renewable energy assets to improve cash flow. However, project developers are also faced with the inability to agree with the builders, financiers or approve Face-to-face communication challenges. The data for the whole year of 2020 will more clearly show the impact of the new crown pneumonia epidemic on green energy investment."
China's performance is particularly outstanding
From a geographical point of view, the performance of renewable energy investment in China, the UK and other countries in the first half of this year was particularly outstanding.
The report believes that China is still the world's largest renewable energy market. In the first half of this year, benefiting from offshore wind power investment, China's total investment in the field of renewable energy increased by about 40% year-on-year. In addition, during the reporting period, the UK's renewable energy investment reached 5.7 billion U.S. dollars, more than three times the investment for the entire year last year. Renewable energy investment across Europe rose by about 50% year-on-year, reaching a total of 36.5 billion US dollars.
In addition, in the first half of this year, Japan, the Netherlands, France, and Germany saw significant growth in investment in the renewable energy sector. According to the report, investment in Japan rose by 14% year-on-year to US$10.8 billion; investment in the Netherlands rose 231% year-on-year to US$6.9 billion; investment in France rose 306% year-on-year to US$6.2 billion; and investment in Germany increased year-on-year 20%, to 3.6 billion US dollars.
However, the data also shows that in the first half of this year, the amount of renewable energy investment in the United States has dropped significantly, to $17.8 billion, a year-on-year decrease of more than 30%. In addition, during the same period, the investment in renewable energy in India and Brazil also fell sharply year-on-year, with investment amounts of US$2.7 billion and US$2.5 billion respectively, a decrease of 50% and 25% respectively.
According to the analysis, the International Energy Agency (IEA) had previously warned that under the impact of the new crown pneumonia epidemic, the total investment in the global energy sector is expected to fall by about US$400 billion this year, setting a record high, while renewable energy may become a major player in the energy sector. The most resilient industry.
Tom Harries, head of BNEF's wind power analysis department, pointed out that the global offshore wind power investment growth rate is expected to slow down in the second half of this year, but a new wave of investment boom will usher in the beginning of next year.