Renewables will account for almost half of global electricity by 2030

Large untapped renewables potential in emerging and developing economies can be realised if policies improve. High financing costs reduce the economic attractiveness of renewables in most emerging and developing economies. Other key challenges include weak grid infrastructure and a lack of visibility over auction volumes. Measures to reduce risks, including by creating stable policy environments with clear long-term targets, can help unlock additional capacity. In countries with fossil fuel overcapacity with long-term contracts, policy makers could consider renegotiating inflexible power and fuel contracts and accelerating the phasedown of fossil fuel plants.

In our main case, renewables will account for almost half of global electricity generation by 2030, with the share of wind and solar PV doubling to 30%. At the end of this decade, solar PV is set to become the largest renewable source, surpassing both wind and hydropower, which is currently the largest renewable generation source by far.