Bloomberg New Energy Finance has been tracking clean energy investment globally for more than 10 years, and is established as the authoritative source of data for clients, industry players and the media.
What is this report?
The clean energy investment figures are built up from a proprietary database of more than 100,000 deal and project records collected and maintained by over 100 analysts and researchers based in 15 locations worldwide.
Our research stands out for its comprehensiveness, geographical reach and the level of detail with which investment transactions are tracked. This enables our team to spot and analyse energy industry trends as soon as they emerge.
Watch the 2016 story unfold
An interactive data visualisation to better understand last year’s trends.
Opinion
What’s in store for clean energy in 2017? 10 predictions from our Founder and Chief Editor.
2016 League Tables
We reveal 2016’s leading players in the clean energy and energy smart technologies sectors.
What the data shows
The latest BNEF figures show dollar investment globally falling in 2016 in dollar terms, with bright spots in offshore wind and acquisition activity. What’s new?
1. Overall investment falls by 18%.
New investment in clean energy fell to $287.5bn in 2016, 18% lower than the record investment of $348.5bn in 2015 and 9% lower than the $315bn invested in 2014.
2. Equipment costs keep falling too.
The 2016 setback in global investment partly reflected sharp falls in equipment prices: cost-competitiveness improvements in solar and wind power mean that more megawatts can be installed for the same price.
3. China and Japan cool down.
After years of record-breaking investment, the two countries cut back on building new large-scale projects and shifted towards digesting the capacity they have already put in place.
4. Offshore wind heats up.
Capital spending commitments hit $29.9bn in 2016, up 40% on the previous year, as developers in Europe and China took advantage of bigger turbines and improved economics.
5. Acquisitions in clean energy break the $100bn level.
This totaled $117.5bn in 2016, up from $97bn in 2015. Behind this surge were a rise in renewable energy project acquisitions to $72.7bn, but particularly a 63% leap in corporate M&A to $33bn.
Plug others in
#BNEF2016
Clean energy investment fell to $287.5bn in 2016, 18% lower than 2015 record of $348.5bn http://bloom.bg/2jfWKSf #BNEF2016 via @BloombergNEF
Setback in renewables investment partly due to cost-competitiveness of solar & wind http://bloom.bg/2jfWKSf #BNEF2016 via @BloombergNEF
After yrs of record investment, China & Japan shift towards digesting existing capacity http://bloom.bg/2jfWKSf #BNEF2016 via @BloombergNEF
Bigger turbines + improved economics = offshore wind investment up 40% to record $29.9bn http://bloom.bg/2jfWKSf #BNEF2016 via @BloombergNEF
Leap in corporate M&A drives acquisitions in clean energy to record $117.5bn, up from $97bn http://bloom.bg/2jfWKSf #BNEF2016 @BloombergNEF
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Press mentions
Financial Times
Investment in green energy falls 18%
Bloomberg News
Clean Energy Spending Drops Most on Record as China Slows Growth
Reuters
Global clean energy investment falls to $288 billion in 2016: research
L’Obs
Energies renouvelables : les investissements ont baissé de 18% dans le monde en 2016
Utility Dive
BNEF: Global clean energy investment tumbled in 2016
Handelsblatt
Investitionen in grüne Energien weltweit gefallen