Countdown to COP21

In the last two days the United States and United Kingdom have taken two very different decisions on the future of solar in their countries. As the world seeks to capitalise on the momentum generated by last week’s Paris climate agreement, they are decisions that could have far-reaching consequences.

Bridge to India founder Tobias Engelmeier shares his thoughts on the future of energy after attending the COP21 Climate Conference.

Solar industry figures have hailed Saturday’s historic climate agreement in Paris and urged swift action by world leaders to map out how countries will now meet the aims of the deal.

Indian prime minister and French president Francois Hollande will jointly launch the International Solar Alliance (ISA) at the COP21 climate conference in Paris today.

Renewables with energy storage can help build low carbon energy networks in the developing world – but the twin technologies still face competition from natural gas while they gradually mature, according to an electric power systems maker and integrator.

The impact on the cost and availability of finance for solar projects in the wake of a successful Paris summit could be profound, writes John Parnell.

Bosses of companies including HSBC Holdings, Microsoft, Nestlé, Dow Chemical Company have signed an open letter urging for action on climate change.

Investment in renewable energy will need to triple by 2030 worldwide to ensure the deployment levels needed to head off excessive global temperature rises, the International Renewable Energy Agency has said.

Solar pioneer Neville Williams has witnessed first hand the astonishing rise of PV over more than 30 years working with the technology. As the world gears up for the Paris climate talks in December, he tells Ben Willis why solar's time as a maintream energy source has now come.

Under plans submitted to combat climate change, renewable energy generation will more than double in eight of the world’s top 10 greenhouse gas (GHG) emitting economies by 2030, while three of those will see their nuclear generation increase tenfold.

Indian prime minister Narendra Modi has invited around 110 nations to join an international solar alliance to be spearheaded by India and launched at the Paris Climate Conference COP21 on 30 November.

The UK government’s special representative on climate change has spoken of his optimism that plans for a concerted international push on clean energy research will be given additional impetus by the climate talks in Paris in December.

The UK’s former chief scientific advisor Sir David King is one of an eminent group of figures pushing for a new international clean energy R&D programme. He tells Ben Willis how he hopes the Paris climate talks in December will give additional momentum to solar and other renewables as they make the final push towards cost-competitiveness with fossil fuels.

United Nations' chief environment scientist Jacquie McGlade has attacked the UK government over its stance on renewable energy subsidies.

Global development banks have pledged to boost funding to help developing countries cope with climate change through the adoption of low-carbon technologies such as solar.

Solar energy is helping developing countries to make ambitious climate change pledges ahead of next month’s UN summit in Paris, the CEO of The Climate Group has told PV Tech.

Chile has adopted a greatly increased renewable and clean energy target of 70% for its energy mix by 2050, with the Latin American country’s Ministry of Energy publishing a roadmap document.

The International Energy Agency has called for a strong agreement at the COP21 climate talks in Paris later this year as the best means of accelerating renewable energy deployment beyond current projections.

Solar has an opportunity to be a focal point of December's crucial climate talks in Paris, but the industry must become better at making itself heard, writes Ben Willis.

A world entirely powered by renewable energy is achievable by 2050 and is a scenario that is becomingly increasingly essential to prevent runaway climate change, a Greenpeace study has claimed.

Last week the UN hosted the first of three crucially important global development conferences this year, culminating in the COP21 climate change talks in December. Reporting on the event, Alexander Lagaaij saw evidence of an appetite for cooperation, but still no high-level understanding of the potential of solar energy to put the world on a more sustainable path.