The World Hit Another Clean Power Record Last Year

Despite an abrupt shift in energy policy over in the US, it’s a big world out there and lots of decarbonization action is occurring elsewhere around the globe. The UK-based global think tank Ember, for example, ran the numbers and calculated that solar energy and other forms of clean power — by which the organization means nuclear energy, too — combined to account for more than 40% of global electricity generation last year, setting a new record.

I’ll be reporting for CleanTechnica from Iceland this week, on a trip sponsored by the public-private partnership Green by Iceland. It’s a good opportunity to explore how countries with long winter nights are finding ways to decarbonize, even without the full benefits of solar energy.

Solar Energy Is Driving The Clean Power Revolution

It’s difficult to overstate the importance of solar power in the energy transition movement, which makes Iceland’s decarbonization goal all the more impressive. The country also has no nuclear fleet to assist, either.

“Solar power has become the engine of the global energy transition, with both solar generation and capacity installations setting new records in 2024,” Ember points out.

“Solar generation has maintained its high growth rate, doubling in the last three years, and adding more electricity than any other source over that period,” the organization adds.

On the down side, Ember advised that the surging demand for electricity resulted in a small rise in fossil-sourced electricity compared to 2023. However, it’s not what you think. Although many fingers have been pointing at data centers and EVs as the culprits, Ember attributes almost all of the uptick to the increased use of air conditioning during heat waves, which are increasing in step with climate trends.

Beyond Clean Power

In terms of hitting climate goals without the benefit of substantial solar resources, Iceland does have the advantage of not needing air conditioning — at least, not for the time being. The country is also well known for its geothermal resources, an advantage that is all but nonexistent in many other nations.

Hydropower is another important feature of the Icelandic energy landscape, and globally as well. As charted by Ember, hydropower — the signature renewable energy resource of the 20th century — continues to over-perform globally in the 21st century, beating solar and wind individually by a wide margin and narrowly edging past nuclear energy as well.

With geothermal and hydropower at hand, Iceland seems confident that it can meet its climate goals. “Iceland aims to achieve carbon neutrality before 2040 and to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 40% by 2030 under the Paris Agreement,” explains the Iceland Ministry of The Environment, Energy, and Climate.

Iceland does have a solid head start, with renewable domestic resources accounting for 85% of its total primary energy supply. This is the highest share of renewable energy in any national total energy budget,” the MEEC notes.

Still, there is plenty of room for progress. “Iceland has great potential for carbon uptake from the atmosphere by afforestation and revegetation, and to curb emissions from soils by reclaiming drained wetlands,” MEEC explains. The agency also lists industrial processes, road transportation, agriculture, fisheries, and waste management as the leading sources of carbon emissions domestically, along with significant emissions from the nation’s peatlands.

The Benefits Of Clean Power

I won’t have a chance to meet all the industry partners in Green By Iceland, but one stop of particular interest will be a tour of the Norðurál aluminum (aluminium in European spelling) plant. Aluminum is an essential feature of clean tech hardware including solar panels and wind turbines. Aluminum producers also seek out regions and countries like Iceland for access to copious amounts of hydropower and other renewables.

“The Icelandic electricity grid is entirely run on renewable energy, from hydro and geothermal resources,” MEEC reminds everyone. “This has attracted aluminum smelters which produce aluminum with significantly lower CO2 emissions than if their operations were powered with electrical energy from fossil fuels like coal and natural gas.”

That makes a substantial difference in terms of cutting carbon emissions related to energy sourcing. As for the rest, Norðurál has outlined a detailed action plan that aligns with EU standards for reducing process-related emissions. Additionally, the company has a plan for reducing emissions related to other operations and systems associated with the plant.

Getting More Power Where It’s Needed

Iceland’s renewable energy profile is also a good fit for energy-intensive agriculture operations, so we’ll also be taking a look at an onshore aquaculture farm integrated with geothermal energy under the umbrella of the microalgae firm VAXA Technologies, and we’ll tour the family-run Friðheimar indoor, year-round tomato farm, which relies on artificial light.

Of interest from the power management side is the firm Laki Power, which has introduced a DLR (Dynamic Line Rating) system aimed at squeezing more capacity out of existing transmission lines while improving reliability, too. DLR systems are monitoring devices that attach to power lines, providing direct, real-time data on weather, wind, and other conditions that impact line capacity. In terms of operational efficiency that’s a sea change from older systems that required grid operators to assign line capacity on a seasonal rotation, based on weather reports.

DLR systems have begun surfacing on the CleanTechnica radar over the past couple of years (here’s another example) and it will be interesting to see how Laki contributes to the field.

And Carbon Capture, Of Course

No technology tour of Iceland would be complete without an opportunity to learn how and why the country has become such a welcoming host to various carbon-fixing technologies. On our list is the Climeworks DAC (direct air capture) facility. We’ll also be visting with Climeworks partner Carbfix to learn more about their mineral-based carbon fixing system. The Carbfix system mineralizes carbon underground, while other innovators are developing mineralization systems that perform a similar task above ground.

Meanwhile, the Ember report (here’s that link again) emphasizes that the growth in renewable energy is the primary driver behind the record-setting pace of clean power generation. While nuclear only added 69 terawatt-hours from 2023 to 2024, renewables added 858 terawatt-hours.

“Hydro remained the largest source of low-carbon electricity (14.3%), followed by nuclear (9.0%), with wind (8.1%) and solar (6.9%) rapidly gaining ground and together overtaking hydro in 2024, while nuclear’s share reached a 45-year low,” Ember summarized.

“The fast pace of global solar growth is set to continue, with 2024 setting a new record for solar capacity installations in a single year – more than double the amount installed in 2022,” the organization added.

As Iceland is on the way to demonstrating, solar is not a necessary element in a nation’s decarbonization plan when alternative resources are available, but it sure is popular among nations that enjoy an overflowing cornucopia of solar resources. That includes the US, but…oh, well…

Photo (cropped): An onshore aquaculture operation powered by geothermal energy demonstrates how nations like Iceland can meet their climate goals, even without optimal solar resources (courtesy of VAXA technologies).