2022 Renewable Energy Forecast
Renewable energy forecast from various experts remained extremely resilient in 2021, owing primarily to solid fundamentals and a supportive legislative environment. Rapid technological advancements and declining prices of renewable energy supplies, along with the growing competitiveness of battery storage, have elevated renewable energy to a position of prominence in a variety of sectors.
Despite supply chain restrictions, increasing transportation costs, and rising commodity prices, capacity installations remained at an all-time high. In the first eight months of 2021, wind and solar capacity additions totaled 13.8 GW, a 28 percent increase over the same time in 2020.
Cities, states, and utilities continued to take measures to accelerate the transition to renewable energy, with some establishing aggressive clean energy objectives, strengthening renewable portfolio requirements, and requiring utilities to purchase energy storage. As of mid-November 2021, 48 of 55 main investor-owned utilities in the United States have committed to reducing carbon emissions, with many doing so by 2050. Additionally, until mid-October 2021, states will have implemented no less than 70 renewable energy forecast and climate-related measures.
As climate change concerns and support for environmental, sustainability, and governance (ESG) concerns rise, and as the majority of market sector consumers (industrial, commercial, and residential) demand for cleaner energy sources, renewable energy forecast growth is expected to increase in 2022.
Simultaneously, the Biden administration’s aim to completely decarbonize the US economy is spurring engagement in the renewable energy industry, which will almost certainly fuel future growth. Provisions in the recently enacted Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), as well as the Build Back Better (BBB) Reconciliation Act, which is currently pending in Congress, might support renewable energy development.
The five trends listed below are projected to take center stage in 2022, presenting new opportunities for renewable energy development:
- Increasing interest in next-generation sustainable energy solutions
- Major role of solar in novel configurations
- Transmission infrastructure becoming critical requirement, particularly for offshore wind
- Evolving supply chain tactics
- Importance of circular economy to the renewable energy industry’s long-term viability
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