Friday November 25, 2016
In the latest edition of the Numbers Report, we’ll take a look at some of the most interesting figures put out this week in the energy sector. Each week we’ll dig into some data and provide a bit of explanation on what drives the numbers.
Let’s take a look.
1. China’s solar lead
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- China is the largest market in the world for clean energy, with the most installed solar capacity (50.8 GW) and also the most wind capacity (139.4 GW).
- After being a laggard for years, China has stepped up on international climate commitments. But China’s main motivation is to clean up its local air pollution problem. About 80 percent of China’s 338 cities fail to meet air quality standards, according to Bloomberg.
- U.S. President-elect Donald Trump may backtrack on American climate commitments, but that it is unlikely to cause China to give up.
- China already outspends the U.S. on clean energy – investing $48.1 billion so far this year compared to the U.S.’ $32.6 billion.
- China leads the U.S. on both clean energy installed and also manufactured. If the U.S. backtracks, that disparity will only grow.
2. OPEC jawbones the market again
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- A few days out from the OPEC meeting in Vienna the cartel has succeeded yet again in stoking a rally in oil prices, with WTI and Brent rising towards $50 per barrel.
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