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illuminem summarizes for you the essential news of the day. Read the full piece on Financial Times or enjoy below:
🗞️ Driving the news: Europe's largest renewable power producer, Statkraft, is scaling back its plans for new wind and solar plants due to lower electricity prices and rising costs
• CEO Birgitte Vartdal emphasized the need to adjust strategy in the face of challenging market conditions
🔭 The context: Statkraft is reducing its annual capacity growth targets for onshore wind, solar, and battery storage to 2-2.5GW from 2026, down from the previous target of 2.5-3GW from 2025 and 4GW by 2030
• Similarly, the offshore wind target has been cut to 6-8GW by 2040 from 10GW previously
🌍 Why it matters for the planet: These adjustments reflect broader challenges in the renewable energy sector, potentially slowing the global energy transition
• The reductions come despite political efforts to triple global renewable capacity by 2030, highlighting the economic hurdles in achieving these goals
⏭️ What's next: The shift in targets may impact future energy supply and carbon reduction efforts
• Statkraft's move follows similar reductions by other European utilities like Ørsted and EDP, signaling a need for increased government support to sustain renewable energy growth
💬 One quote: "The market conditions for the entire renewable energy industry have become more challenging," stated Birgitte Vartdal, CEO of Statkraft
📈 One stat: The S&P Global Clean Energy Index has dropped 25% since July last year, indicating decreased investor confidence in the sector
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