The Four Horsemen of the Energy Transition: Where’s The Money Going?

Solar, wind, hydrogen and nuclear – we need more investment in these renewables, but where can the money come from?

In 2022, worldwide investment in renewables hit almost half a trillion dollars. Investment in solar – the largest sector - jumped 36% to 308 billion. Investment in wind – the second largest – remained stable at 175 billion. Overall investment in the energy transition topped 1.1 trillion dollars. The amount invested in new renewable projects is at the highest level in history – but it’s still not enough. For us to achieve net zero by 2050, it’s estimated we need between 3-5 trillion dollars a year going into the industry.

On the Interchange today, we look at the flow of money needed across renewable projects. We focus on hydrogen, nuclear, wind and solar: the four horsemen of the energy transition. Joining us on the show are two of the leading climate economists in the US, both from Columbia University, Gernot Wagner and Bruce Usher. Gernot is a senior lecturer at Columbia, and he explores the policy decisions and economic barriers to the mass adoption of renewables in the US. Bruce lectures as Director of the Tamer Center for Social Enterprise at Columbia’s Business School, and he explains why hydrogen is such a promising piece of the energy transition puzzle.

Together they look at the investment going into the four main renewable energies and analyse what more needs to be done to get clean energy investment to the level it needs to be.

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Wood Mackenzie’s Solar & Energy Storage Summit is back, taking place at the Palace Hotel in San Francisco on June 21 and 22. Join expert solar and storage analysts for discussions with leading grid-scale utilities, solar and energy storage developers and federal policy makers. 

How is the IRA catapulting the development of solar and storage in North America? How can we continue to build a productive environment for solar and energy storage as we move forward with the energy transition? What is required to nurture the development of a thriving localized storage component supply chain? 

Expect two days of panel discussions, presentations and workshops, as we explore the opportunities for solar and storage in the coming decades.

If you are interested in sponsoring or attending find out more on woodmac.com/events/solar-energy-storage-summit

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