Report finds that Global Renewable Energy Growth is Outstripping Coal and Nuclear

Amsterdam, 23 June 2011 -- A new analysis of the global power plant market launched today by Greenpeace International shows that since the 1990s, installations of wind and solar grew faster than any other power plant technology. In addition, renewable energy expanded rapidly, to reach its biggest market share in 2010 and providing enough capacity to supply electricity to the equivalent of one third of Europe. The Greenpeace report, The Silent Energy Revolution: 20 Years in the Making, also highlights how renewable energy power plants accounted for more than a quarter (26%) of all new power plants added to the worldwide electricity grid over the past decade, compared to nuclear power stations representing just 2% of new installations in the same period. The report shows that while the global wind industry added some 35,000 MW of capacity in 2010 alone, it took the global nuclear industry a full ten years to achieve this (2000-2010). During the same period, new coal installations went into decline in every country except China, where almost 80% of the world’s new coal plants went into operation in the last decade. However, not only has China phased out around some of its dirtiest coal plants over the last five years, it has also increased its domestic wind market, doubling capacity every year since 2003. A regional analysis for the USA and Europe in report shows that the liberalisation of electricity markets is leading to fewer investments in new power plants and the lifetime extension of existing ones. New coal and nuclear power plants made up just 10% of installations in the US and …