Renewable energy commercialization

Renewable energy commercialization requires the application of three distinct generations' worth of renewable energy technology, all of which date back more than a century. Biomass, hydroelectricity, geothermal power and heat are examples of first-generation technologies that are now established and commercially viable. Other examples include solar and wind power. Second-generation technologies, such as solar heating, photovoltaics, wind power, solar thermal power plants, and contemporary kinds of bioenergy, have reached the point where they are ready for the market and are now being implemented. Research and development activities must be maintained in order for third-generation technologies such as enhanced biomass gasification, hot-dry-rock geothermal power, and ocean energy to make significant contributions on a worldwide scale. As of the year 2012, renewable energy accounted for almost half of all newly built nameplate electrical capacity, and its prices have been steadily decreasing since then.

The adoption of renewable energy technology is helped along by "levelling the playing field" created by public policy and political leadership in various countries. Countries such as Germany, Denmark, and Spain have been at the forefront of creative policy implementation, which has been the primary driver of the majority of growth over the course of the last decade. Germany has made a commitment to the "Energiewende," or the transition to a sustainable energy economy, as of the year 2014, while Denmark has made a commitment to using only renewable energy by the year 2050. There are presently 144 nations in the world that have policy objectives for renewable energy.

In 2015, renewable energy maintained its tremendous expansion, which brought with it a plethora of advantages. There was a new high reached of US$329 Billion for worldwide investment in renewable energy sources, which resulted to new records being established for installed capacity for wind (64GW) and photovoltaics (57GW). The creation of new employment is a significant advantage that comes along with an increase in investment. China, Germany, Spain, the United States of America, Italy, and Brazil have been ranked as the top nations for investment during the last several years. Companies such as BrightSource Energy, First Solar, Gamesa, GE Energy, Goldwind, Sinovel, Targray, Trina Solar, Vestas, and Yingli are involved in the production of renewable energy.

Concerns about climate change are also driving an increase in the development of sectors related to renewable energy. The International Energy Agency (IEA) released a forecast in 2011 predicting that solar power generators might generate the majority of the world's energy during the next 50 years, therefore lowering harmful emissions of greenhouse gases.

In the United States, employment have been created more effectively by renewable energy sources than by coal or oil companies.