Renewing Our Environment
By: Owen Higley
As threats of climate change become increasingly irrevocable month over month due to increased levels of fossil fuel burning, heat generation, and transportation ventures; renewable energy systems have come to be a more common presence across the globe. Estimates show that large scale renewable energy projects will continue to be developed at rising rates as planetary needs demand lower levels of emissions. Renewable energy systems are various in their methods, and can be strategically adapted to nearly any geographic feature from the open ocean to the desert, making them convenient from both location and environmental standpoints. Of the various renewable energy methods, solar power, wind farms, and hydro power are some of the most widely recognized and developed systems around the world.
In further detail, to provide a specific example, showcasing the extreme amounts of power that renewable energy can generate, I wanted to talk about China’s Gansu Wind Farm located on the edge of the Gobi Desert. According to a New York Times article by Javier C. Hernández, the Gansu Wind Farm has over 7,000 high powered wind turbines with the capability of producing enough energy to power a small country with possible production of up to 20 gigawatts (GW) of power. With such large energy producing capabilities which simultaneously help to combat the climate crisis, it seems as if it will only be a matter of time until more projects to scale with the Gansu Wind Farm will come to fruition, causing the renewable energy industry to skyrocket. In 2023, the renewable energy market was estimated to be valued at $1 trillion and is predicted to expand over 100% to nearly $2.03 trillion by 2030, highlighting the paramount forecasted development of renewables in the near future.
All this optimism and success currently seen within the renewable energy market is likely bad news for energy commodities such as oil and coal. While these resources have been critical sources of energy throughout modern human history, our needs change with time, and it seems that an up and coming change could be decreased reliance on high emission producing energy sources, which is a category many of the energy sector commodities fall under. With the goal of reaching “net zero” carbon emissions (carbon input and output cancel out) by 2050 as stated in the Paris Accords, if remaining goal oriented, change will occur quickly. When looking at this future ambition with commodities in mind, it presents great opportunities for some, and poses great threats to others. The transition to renewable energy has the possibility to devastate energy commodities, and will likely be a blessing for commodities in the industrial metals sector.
Metals such as cobalt and aluminum are necessary to build renewable energy technology as well as more overlooked items that will play a role in the shift to renewable energy such as power lines needed to disperse the renewable electricity. With increasing awareness of the urgent need to transform global energy production, renewable energy sources are gradually reshaping the energy landscape and reducing reliance on fossil fuels, further shifting the active utility of energy and metals commodities and their individual values for better or for worse.
