Renewables at 20-year high in 2020

Developers in US, China and Vietnam rush to get projects connected in fourth quarter

More renewable capacity came online in 2020 than in any other year since 1999 as firms in the US, China and Vietnam rushed to get projects connected in order to benefit from expiring subsidy regimes. Capacity additions rose 45pc to reach 280GW last year, with developers connecting almost 150 GW of new renewable capacity in Q4–more than double the number for the fourth quarter of 2019 and more than the amount installed in the first three-quarters of 2020. The end-of-year rush illustrated the ability of supply chains to meet huge surges in demand, according to the IEA’s Renewable Energy Market Update. “Wind and solar power are giving us more reasons to be optimistic about our climate goals as