A. The renewable energy captured from wind, sun, global warming, waves, and small dams is drawing record amounts of investment as poor villagers and whole nations are looking for clean, abundant manners to stimulate economic growth. According to a new report by the Renewable Energy Policy Network (REN21) for the 21st century, global investment in renewable energy set a new record of $ 30 billion in 2004. The report stated that the technologies like wind, sunlight, bio, mass geothermal, and small water now account for 4% of the world’s capacity to generate 160 gigawatts of electricity. They are expanding at a rate of 20-30 percent per annum, yet, compared to two or three percent of oil and gas.

B. Eric Martino said “Renewable energy has become big business,” lead author of the study, “Renewables 2005: Global Status Report.” Martinot, a senior fellow at the Washington, DC-based think tank Worldwatch Institute and a lecturer at Tsinghua University in Beijing, stated that renewable energy has drawn the world’s largest companies, including General Electric, Siemens, Sharp, and Royal Dutch Shell. The report counts that nearly 40 million households around the world heat their water through solar collectors, most of which have been installed in the past five years. Overall, the renewable energy industry employs 1.7 million people, and most of them are proficient and nicely-paid.

C. More than 100 researchers from Martino and more than 20 countries have evaluated many renewable technologies, such as small hydro, modem biomass, air, solar, geothermal, and biofuels such as ethanol and biodiesel. These technologies now compete with conventional fuels in four different markets, power generation, hot water and space heating, vehicle fuels, and rural fuel supplies.

D. Renewable energy unlike oil, coal, and gas, renewable energy is acquiring popularity because it is believed to be in unlimited supply and has little or no pollution compared to those fossil fuels. Scientists blame the burning of fossil fuels for discharging carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, which trigger global climate change, exacerbating droughts in some regions of the world, moderate floods and storms, and spread of tropical diseases to moderate zones.

E. In addition, renewable energy will empower millions of poor and helpless people who do not have access to dependable, affordable, and clean modem energy services, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said in a message to Beijing’s International Renewable Energy Conference, which started on Monday. Rising oil prices have especially hit growing oil-importing countries and highlight the demand for alternative energy supplies, Annan said. According to the REN21 report, government support for renewable energy is increasing rapidly. At least 48 countries, including 14 growing countries, have some form of renewable energy development policy. Generally, renewable resources in a particular country include goals to ensure that 5-30 percent of energy use is generated by 2010-2012.

F. While acknowledging that coal will be its primary source of electricity for decades, the prospects for the renewable sector appeared to be further boosted when China announced on Monday that it was raising its target of relying on renewable energy. Renewable energy should be 15 percent of national consumption by 2020. China aims to get 10 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2020.

G. The report said that the orders have been issued in more than 20 states and provinces worldwide to blend biofuels into automotive fuels in three major countries: Brazil, China, and India. According to REN21, which includes representatives of governments and NGOs, government leadership has assured market success. According to the report, renewable energy market leaders in 2004 include the proliferation of biofuels, China on solar water, Germany on solar power, and Spain on wind power.

H. The fastest-growing energy technology in the globe is grid-connected solar photovoltaic (PV), whose current ability in Japan, Germany, and the United States was over 400,000 roofs, blooming sixty percent a year from 2000 to 2004. With nearly seventeen gigawatts installed in 2004, wind power grew by 28 percent last year to second place. Production of ethanol, biodiesel, and other biofuels exceeded 33 billion liters in 2004 when ethanol accounted for 3% of the 1,200 billion liters produced worldwide.

I. $ 500 million each year goes to growing countries for development assistance for renewable energy projects, training, and market support, the majority of which are provided by the German Development Finance Group (GDFG), the World Bank Group, and the Global Environment Facility (GEF). Based on the rest of these funds and dozens of other donors and projects will be donated. More than 4.5 million “green” electricity consumers in Europe, the United States, Canada, Australia, and Japan bought renewable electricity in 2004. Asia is visited as an extensive market for renewable energy as it aims to meet the growing need for energy to feed quick financial expansion in the midst of runaway oil costs.