Investors confident in continued growth of renewables

Source: By John Siciliano and Josh Siegel, Washington Examiner • Posted: Tuesday, June 18, 2019

 U.S. financial institutions are confident about the prospects for continued growth of the renewable energy industry, according to a report released Monday.

The American Council on Renewable Energy’s (ACORE) survey of investors found that one-third of respondents plan to increase their investments in renewables by more than 10% in 2019 compared to last year.

No respondents said they would decrease their companies’ investments by more than 5%. Most respondents — 77% — said they are confident U.S. renewable energy growth will remain high over the next three years compared to other asset classes.

The U.S. attracted $56.7 billion of investments in renewable energy and accommodating grid technologies in 2018, an amount of capital ranking second to China.

ACORE has set a goal of attracting $1 trillion in U.S. private sector investment in renewables by 2030.

Greg Wetstone, ACORE’s president and CEO, said the renewable industry will need additional federal policy help to meet the $1 trillion goal, such as tax credits for carbon-free electricity generation and energy storage, a clean electricity standard, or a carbon tax.