The non-hydropower renewables sector in APAC is expected to grow by 10.4% annually to 3,010GW in 2032, according to research firm BMI Research’s recent study Asia Power Regional Overview: Growing Policy Momentum Boosts Solar And Wind Expansions.
The region’s accelerated progress of solar and wind power projects driven by elevated fossil fuel prices, along with economic recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic, will contribute to the growth. Geographically, China will lead the growth as its installed solar capacity expanded at 69.2GW from the end of December 2022 to May 2023 based on the Chinese national energy administration’s figure.
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In the next 10 years, the growth momentum of the Chinese solar PV sector will continue as the market boasts the ability to manufacture and deploy solar installations with a robust domestic manufacturing sector and demand.
India also experienced significant growth as its pipeline of solar and wind power projects increased to 89.3GW as of the end of the second quarter of this year from 81.2GW in Q1 2023.
Of the APAC region’s 1,130GW of installed non-hydropower renewables in 2022, China accounted for 70%. Thanks to policy support, the proportion will increase to 77% in 2032. However, the Chinese market is not easy for foreign companies to venture into as there are barriers to accessing finance and a poorly diversified competitive landscape.
Instead, foreign companies can go for other markets in the APAC region, including Australia, Vietnam, India and Taiwan. According to the report, Australia is advancing domestic support and international partnerships for renewables, and Vietnam offers improving clarity on its stance on renewables. BMI research expected that Australia and Vietnam will be at the forefront of more private sector opportunities for renewables in Asia.
When it comes to the type of renewables, APAC’s non-hydropower renewables additions from the end of 2022 to 2032 will be dominated by Solar power (69%), followed by onshore wind (25%) and offshore wind (5%). However, as of the end of June 2023, there were 582 solar PV and 593 wind power projects in development in Asia, with capacity totalling 218.6GW and 405.5GW respectively.
The average capacity of solar PV projects was 370MW, smaller than that of wind projects (700MW).
