Investing in Clean Energy: Understanding the Global Energy Transition

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Douglas J. Arent
Douglas J. Arent

Doug Arent is the deputy associate laboratory director for the Scientific Computing and Energy Analysis Directorate at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), as well as a senior associate (non-resident) with the CSIS Energy Security and Climate Change Program. Previously, he was director of the Joint Institute for Strategic Energy Analysis at NREL.

He specializes in strategic planning and financial analysis, clean energy technologies, energy and water issues, and international and governmental policies. From 2006 to 2010, he was director of the Strategic Energy Analysis Center at NREL. In addition to his NREL responsibilities, he is an author and expert reviewer for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Special Report on Renewable Energy and a member of the U.S. government review panel for the IPCC reports on climate change.

Prior to joining NREL, he was a management consultant to clean energy companies, providing strategy, development, and market counsel. Previous positions include: director of strategic marketing and business development at Network Photonics; director of media gateway products and strategic planning manager at Lucent Technologies (now Avaya); and vice president of business development for Amonix Inc.

 

The State of Clean Energy Technologies

It’s hard to miss the news on renewables and other clean energy technologies today, which has ranged from unprecedented cost reductions to investments in new multibillion dollar renewable and hydrogen plants, electric vehicles, and commitments to decarbonize. For those that might have missed the larger trends, more renewables, in particular solar photovoltaics (PV) and wind, have been installed worldwide than fossil fuel power generation or nuclear plants every year for nearly the past decade. Last year alone, more than 200 gigawatts (GW) (equivalent to about 200 large scale nuclear power plants) of new renewable power was installed, and investment totaled nearly $300 billion, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance, the International Energy Agency (IEA), and the Renewable Energy Network. Solar and wind have reached nearly two-thirds of new power added globally last year. And despite the challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic, the economic fundamentals of renewable energy have not changed.


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