China Becomes the Leading Country in Green Energy Investment

China has officially surpassed the United States in the amount of investments made in renewable energy, attracting nearly double the capital compared to the U.S. Thus, it has become the largest market in the world for projects related to this energy, reports Cnnmoney.com.

According to a report released on Thursday by Pew Charitable Trust and Bloomberg New Energy Finance, China invested $34 billion last year, primarily in wind turbine systems. The U.S., on the other hand, invested $18 billion. The authors of the report emphasize that this situation has been largely contributed to by the stable and long-term policy designed and implemented by the Chinese government, enabling easier access to favorable loans for entrepreneurs willing to invest in renewable energy sources. Such figures and the situation in the green energy market are not favorable for Americans, as confirmed by Phyllis Cuttino, director of Pew Environment Group’s Global Warming Campaign. She recently stated that it is important for lawmakers to start charging for the amounts of carbon dioxide emitted, which would ultimately raise fossil fuel prices and make renewable energy much more accessible.

She also highlighted that the government should encourage the consumption of energy from renewable sources by empowering utility providers to deliver a certain percentage of energy from environmentally friendly sources to citizens, which would, in the long run, increase the competitiveness of such energy sources in the market. The report also notes that from 1998 to the present, more than 700,000 workers have been employed in the renewable energy sector in the United States, which is, according to all indications, just the beginning of its development, and experts predict further growth in employment in this sector. Due to this data, Americans fear Chinese dominance in this market, as the continuation of Chinese supremacy could lead to hundreds of thousands of employed Americans losing their jobs. In China, however, a massive amount of coal is used to generate electricity.

It is well known that they have long resisted charging for emitted carbon dioxide. The country also has a very aggressive campaign promoting the use of a certain percentage of energy from renewable sources. In the U.S. Congress, on the other hand, several laws aimed at stimulating this sector are pending, but they face significant opposition, from lawmakers to the general public. Opponents either fear that introducing such laws would be too costly for the U.S. economy or that renewable energy is unprepared for such undertakings or that global warming is not as much of a problem as everyone claims.

In total, $162 billion was invested in renewable energy worldwide last year, which is 6.6 percent less than in 2008. The same report claims that investment in the oil and gas industry was 19 percent lower during the same period. This year, a 25 percent increase in investment in the renewable energy sector is expected, which would raise the amount of investments to $200 billion, predicts the Bloomberg New Energy Finance report. In relation to the size of the economy, Spain has invested the most in renewable sources. The Spanish government, in fact, invested 0.71 percent of GDP in clean energy. Following that criterion are the United Kingdom, China, and Brazil, while the U.S. ranks eleventh. (T. Vi.)