Investor confidence in renewable energy hits a high

The new report also tracks progress on the $1T 2030: American Renewable Investment Goal, an initiative ACORE launched in 2018 to help secure US$1 trillion in private sector investment in renewable energy and enabling grid technologies by 2030. US$1 trillion of investment over 2018 - 2030 would represent more than two times the historic investment in the US renewable sector before the campaign and help put the country on a trajectory toward meeting President Biden’s goal of a carbon-free grid by 2035. One-sixth of the total US$1 trillion campaign goal (US$167 billion) has now been met, despite a 12% decline in renewable energy investment in 2020. To achieve the $1T 2030 objective, an average of US$92.6 billion a year will need to be invested through 2029 – an annual increase of 59% over the 2020 investment level.

“The soaring confidence in the renewable energy and energy storage sectors is encouraging,” said ACORE President and Chief Executive Officer, Gregory Wetstone. “If we are going to meet our $1T 2030 objective and achieve the President’s goal of decarbonising the power sector by 2035, the status quo is no longer going to cut it. Renewable sector investors and developers seem to understand that this is the moment to accelerate investment in renewable energy and grid-enabling technologies to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.”

To gain a better understanding of the expected environment for renewable sector finance over the next three years, ACORE surveyed leading financial institutions and renewable energy development companies.

Key survey findings include:

• More than two-thirds of surveyed investors (68%) are planning to increase their renewable energy investments by more than 10% this year compared to 2020.
• Investors and developers have an ‘extremely confident’ outlook on the growth of renewable energy and energy storage over the next three years, with nearly all surveyed companies planning to increase their investment or development activity.
• Tax equity remains the financing source hardest hit by the pandemic, according to both investors and developers.
• Energy storage and utility-scale solar rank as the most popular preferences for investment among surveyed investors over the next three years.
• Nearly all surveyed investors (90%) and developers (93%) report maintained or increased risk appetites in 2021 compared to 2020.
• Investors consider the US to be an attractive venue for investment compared to leading countries like China over the next three years.
• The PJM, CAISO and NYISO electricity markets rank as the most attractive US markets for renewable energy investment and development over the next three years.
• Most investors expect the attractiveness of renewable energy as an asset class to increase compared to other asset classes in 2021 - 2024.
• A clear majority of investors and developers identify long-term extensions of the wind and solar tax credits and new standalone tax credits for energy storage and regionally significant transmission as effective federal policies for growing the sector.

In the report, ACORE outlines key policy reforms and market drivers to support the achievement of the $1T 2030 goal, including federal tax policy that provides a long-term level playing field in support of carbon-free electricity generation.

For more news and technical articles from the global renewable industry, read the latest issue of Energy Global magazine.

Energy Global's Spring 2021 issue

The Spring issue of Energy Global features a varied spectrum of in-depth technical articles detailing recent projects, future projections, and technological advancements in the renewables sector, from companies including GlobalData, Atlas Copco, Watlow, QED Naval, TRACTO, AB Energy, and more.

Read the article online at: https://www.energyglobal.com/special-reports/16062021/investor-confidence-in-renewable-energy-hits-a-high/