The success of the climate and energy transitions rides on US-EU cooperation. Because these transformations are so fundamental to each of our societies, they must be grounded in extensive stakeholder engagement on each side of the Atlantic.
US and European companies will be critical to the development of a cleaner energy future. The EU’s ambitious European Green Deal outlines a wide set of initiatives ranging from the de-carbonisation of the energy sector, development of cleaner modes of transport, renovation of buildings to reduce energy use, and investments in the circular economy. The plan will require trillions of euros in investments to achieve the ambitious target of making the continent climate neutral by 2050.
US business supports Europe's green revolution
Renewable energy has become an increasingly important sector in terms of FDI. Renewable energy projects outpaced traditional energy investments in 2020 for the first time in history. Despite the coronavirus recession, renewable energy investments proved to be relatively resilient during 2020. Wind and solar were the top sectors for renewable energy FDI announcements. The fastest growing region was Europe, with greenfield FDI into European renewable projects rising by 70% last year, driven by the UK, France, Poland, Portugal, Italy and Ireland.
U.S. companies in Europe have become a driving force for Europe’s green revolution, especially through the addition of wind and solar capacity on the continent. Since 2007, U.S. companies have been responsible for more than half of the long-term renewable energy agreements in Europe.
Stat-attack
- In 2020, renewable energy investment projects outpaced traditional energy investments for the first time in history.
- Greenfield investments in the coal, oil and gas industries dropped by more than 62% in 2020.
- Investment in renewable energy projects rose by 70% in Europe last year, making it the fastest growing region for renewable energy investment.
- Sustainable investing has been a key area of support for the renewables sector: green bond issuance surged 31% in 2020 to $742 billion dollars.
- Over 80% of all green bonds issued in 2020 were issued by Europe or the US.
- Since 2007, US companies have been responsible for more than half of the long-term renewable energy agreements in Europe.
- US companies account for 4 of the top 5 purchasers of solar and wind capacity in Europe.
- The US and European government budgets for research into future green technologies were $17 billion in 2019. That is about double the budget of China.
