Can renewable energy sources meet the world's energy demand?

Conventional energy sources based on oil, coal and natural gas have proven to be highly effective drivers of economic progress, but at the same time, they are very damaging to the environment and human health. This traditional energy source is facing increasing pressure on a series of environmental front, which perhaps the most serious are the imminent threat of climate change and the necessary reduction in greenhouse gases (GHG). It is now clear that efforts to keep the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere below even twice the pre-industrial level can not be achieved in a global economy dominated by oil and coal.

Theoretically, renewable energy sources can often meet the world's energy demand. More important, renewable energy technologies can now be considered important compones of local and regional energy systems. Solar energy, biomass resources and wind energy, together with new efficiency measures available for deployment in the world today in day, it could supply half of the total energy needs. As an alternative to centralized power plants, renewable energy systems are ideal for providing a decentralized energy supply that could help reduce capital infrastructure costs.


Renewable systems based on photovoltaic panels, windmills, biomass, small hydroelectric plants can serve as mass producers of "energy devices" that can be manufactured at low cost and adapted to meet energy loads and specific service conditions. these systems have a lower impact on the environment, and the impact they have is greater dispersion than that of centralized power plants, which in some cases contribute significantly to environmental air pollution and acid rain.

There has been significant progress in reducing the price of the installation of renewable technologies. In general, renewable energy systems are characterized by a low cost without fuel, although the costs of operation and maintenance can be considerable. The System as photovoltaic contains far fewer active mechanical parts than comparable fossil fuel combustion systems, and is therefore likely to be less expensive to maintain in the long term.

The cost of solar and wind energy systems have decreased substantially in the last 30 years and will continue to decline. For decades, oil and natural gas prices have been held back, as one research group noted that "predictably unpredictable." Recent analyzes have shown that the generation capacity of wind and solar energy can be added at a low marginal cost in relation to fossil-based generation additions.

 Geothermal and wind power can be competitive with modern combined cycle plants and geothermal, wind and biomass all have lower total costs of advanced coal fired plants, once the approximate environmental costs are included.

 Environmental costs are conservatively based on direct damage to terrestrial and fluvial systems from emissions from mining and pollutants, as well as the impact on crop yields and urban areas. The costs would be much higher if the damage caused by the worldwide elimination of parasites should be estimated and included.

The momentum for the development of renewable clean energy technologies and others is no longer being driven solely by environmental concerns; These technologies are becoming economically competitive. According to Merrill Lynch Robin Batchelor, the traditional energy sector has lacked interest for investors in recent years due to strong regulation, low growth and a tendency to be cyclical.

In the United States the lack of support from new innovative companies sends a signal to the US energy markets are biased against new entrants. The clean energy industry could, however, become a leading industry similar to that of semiconductors in the United States and computer systems.

Renewable energies have historically had a difficult time affecting markets that have been dominated by traditional, large-scale fossil fuel-based systems. This is partly due to new renewable energy technologies and others are only now being mass-produced and have previously had high capital costs relative to more conventional systems, but also because coal, oil and gas fueled systems They have benefited from a range of subsidies in recent years.