China still at the top of Ernst & Young's green energy indices

Sep 19, 2011 - China is still number one in the latest Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness Indices of US audit and consultancy company Ernst & Young, followed by Germany, the US, the UK and India.

The Chinese government has recently announced that it would launch tenders for 2.0 GW of offshore wind power capacity, as part of its plan to have 5.0 GW of offshore wind installations by 2015.

Germany, second in the indices, climbed by two points in Ernst & Young's wind index after it unveiled a EUR-5-billion (USD 6.8bn) incentives scheme to back offshore wind power development.

The UK, which is fourth on Ernst & Young's list, dropped by a point in the wind index after Freedom of Information data showed that some 50% of all onshore wind power projects were rejected at the planning stage. Many sector players expect cuts in the incentives for onshore wind farms.

Romania leapfrogged to number 16 from number 18 thanks to its recently-approved green certificate scheme. Wind power capacity in the country is seen to reach 1.0 GW by end-2011, compared to 469 MW in 2010. At the same time, Bulgaria fell two points in the wind index as a result of its new Renewable Energy Act that significantly affects the revenue certainty of onshore wind projects. Companies and organisations from the sector fear that this regulatory uncertainty and the lack of grid infrastructure can hit renewable energy investment in Bulgaria.

(EUR 1.0 = USD 1.364)

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