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Urea Prices Spike by 46% in October Following Natural Gas Cost

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Urea Prices Spike by 46% in October Following Natural Gas Cost

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Urea price soared by +46% in October 2021, reaching $612.5 per tonne, according to the latest World Bank’s data. The spike was caused by a sharp slump in the world’s production, as many producers have suspended manufacturing owing to skyrocketing natural gas prices and energy resource shortages. Russia, China and Egypt remain the key urea suppliers, while India, Brazil and the U.S. lead the world import ranking. 

Global Urea Price Trend 

According to World Bank’s data, from September 2021 to October 2021, the global urea price jumped from $418.75 per tonne to $612.5 per tonne. Since the beginning of this year, the global price increased more than twofold, from $265 per tonne in January to $612.5 per tonne in October. In 2020, the global average urea price estimated at $229.1 per tonne. The rapidly growing cost of energy resources, primarily natural gas, has not only led to a rise in urea cost but has also resulted in the work suspension of fertilizer manufacturing plants around the world.

Global Urea Exports by Country

Global urea exports fell to 48M tonnes in 2020, declining by -2.9% y-o-y. In value terms, urea exports dropped from $14.5B in 2019 to $12.7B in 2020.

Russia (7.3M tonnes) and China (5.5M tonnes) represented the key exporters of urea in 2020, recording approx. 24% and 18% of total exports, respectively. It was distantly followed by Egypt (3.1M tonnes), Indonesia (2.4M tonnes), Malaysia (2.1M tonnes) and Ukraine (1.5M tonnes), together creating a 30% share of total exports. The following exporters – Poland (1.3M tonnes), the Netherlands (1.3M tonnes), Germany (1.2M tonnes), Canada (0.8M tonnes) and the U.S. (0.8M tonnes) – together made up a further 18% of the total exports.

Over the last year, urea exports from Russia and China rose by +4.5% y-o-y and +10.2% y-o-y, respectively, while the supplies from Egypt dropped by -29%.

In value terms, Russia ($1.5B), China ($1.4B) and Egypt ($891M) constituted the countries with the highest levels of exports in 2020, with a combined 51% share of global exports.

World’s Leading Urea Importers

In 2020, India (11M tonnes), distantly followed by Brazil (7.1M tonnes), the U.S. (4.5M tonnes), Turkey (2.5M tonnes), Australia (2.4M tonnes) and Thailand (2.4M tonnes) represented the major importers of urea, together committing 63% of total imports. Mexico (1.4M tonnes), France (1.4M tonnes), Argentina (1.1M tonnes), Spain (0.9M tonnes), Italy (0.9M tonnes), the U.K. (0.9M tonnes), and South Korea (0.8M tonnes) followed a long way behind the leaders.

In value terms, the largest urea importing markets worldwide were India ($2.9B), Brazil ($1.9B) and the U.S. ($1.2B), with a combined 47% share of global imports.

Source: IndexBox Platform

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States Most Dependent on Coal for Electricity

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At the recent UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, world leaders convened to negotiate new goals for reducing carbon emissions in the effort to slow the pace of global warming. Across two weeks of negotiations, one of the major issues under discussion was the use of coal as an energy source. Some coal-dependent nations including India and China argued for a “phase down” rather than a total “phase out” of coal power in the final agreement, while U.S. envoy John Kerry predicted in an interview that the U.S. would eliminate it by 2030.

It is one of the cheapest energy sources available in the U.S., in part because the U.S. houses a large portion of the world’s coal reserves. But coal also has other environmental and social downsides that have made it a less desirable fuel source. Mining and burning coal heavily emits greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane and also poses risks of air and water pollution. Many policymakers and environmental advocates are now pushing for a transition away from coal for that reason.

Until recently, however, cost won out, and inexpensive coal was the predominant fuel source in the U.S., accounting for more than half of electricity generation in the U.S. up until 2003. Since then, dependence on coal has plummeted and currently accounts for only 19.3% of total U.S. generation. The swift decline in coal has been made possible as other cleaner energy sources have become less expensive. Natural gas has seen a major boom over the last two decades as techniques like hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling made it easier to extract. Renewable sources like wind and solar have also become less expensive and more widely adopted in recent years thanks to government investment and technological advances. As a result, the share of electricity generated from renewables has risen by two-thirds since 1990.

Some states that have traditionally relied on coal both as an economic driver and as an energy source have been slower to make the transition. The majority of coal production in the U.S. is contained to a handful of states, including Wyoming and West Virginia, and because coal is cheap and plentiful, these heavy coal producers are also among the states that generate the greatest share of electricity from coal and a lower share from renewables. In contrast, the states that depend more heavily on renewables either have governments that have prioritized clean energy and emissions reductions or geographic features that make them well-suited to wind, solar, or hydropower installations.

The data used in this analysis is from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. To determine the states most dependent on coal for electricity, researchers at Commodity.com calculated the share of total electricity generated from coal. In the event of a tie, the state with the greater total electricity generated from coal was ranked higher. Researchers also calculated the total and proportion of electricity generated from renewable sources. Renewable sources include solar, wind, geothermal, biomass, and hydroelectric.

Here are the states most dependent on coal for electricity.

State Rank Share of electricity  generated from coal 5-year change in electricity generated from coal Total electricity generated from coal (MWh) Share of electricity generated from renewables Total electricity generated from renewables (MWh)
West Virginia    1    88.6% -26.2% 50,216,398 6.2% 3,496,285

 
Wyoming    2    79.4% -22.6% 33,359,104 16.1% 6,763,997

 
Missouri    3    71.3% -20.8% 51,755,690 7.5% 5,450,572

 
Kentucky    4    68.7% -39.9% 43,638,313 8.5% 5,395,636

 
Utah    5    61.5% -28.0% 22,806,021 12.5% 4,644,687

 
North Dakota    6    58.1% -11.7% 24,496,807 38.1% 16,084,768

 
Indiana    7    53.1% -38.9% 47,772,885 8.2% 7,364,544

 
Nebraska    8    51.0% -22.3% 18,788,647 28.9% 10,648,740

 
Wisconsin    9    38.7% -36.1% 23,761,097 9.4% 5,779,793

 
New Mexico    10    37.5% -37.4% 12,788,184 27.2% 9,253,738

 
Ohio    11    37.2% -37.2% 45,008,596 2.9% 3,500,737

 
Montana    12    36.4% -47.0% 8,490,284 59.4% 13,872,119

 
Colorado    13    36.0% -38.2% 19,478,405 30.9% 16,724,964

 
Kansas    14    31.1% -31.0% 16,959,839 44.2% 24,117,519

 
Arkansas    15    28.2% -29.1% 15,420,998 10.5% 5,735,702

 
United States    –    19.3% -42.8% 773,392,897 19.5% 783,003,365

 

 

For more information, a detailed methodology, and complete results, you can find the original report on Commodity.com’s website.

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States That Consume the Most Natural Gas

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As the world navigates the effects of climate change, policymakers are looking for strategies and investments to reduce carbon emissions and slow global warming. Global leaders met in Glasgow earlier this year to negotiate new targets for greenhouse gas reduction and climate change mitigation. In the U.S., investments in clean energy and the electric grid were a major component of the $1.2 trillion infrastructure package that Congress passed and President Joe Biden recently signed into law.

As policymakers work to reduce emissions, natural gas occupies a unique position in the U.S. energy mix. In recent years, widespread adoption of extraction techniques like hydraulic fracturing have made natural gas cheaper to produce. This has made natural gas an economically viable, cleaner-burning alternative to other heavy-emitting fossil fuels like coal. But natural gas does still produce carbon emissions, and as clean energy sources like wind and solar themselves become less expensive, the future of natural gas is uncertain.

Progressive governments with a focus on reducing carbon emissions, like California at the state level and Seattle at the local level, have enacted new building codes to discourage or restrict the use of natural gas in new construction. Simultaneously, states that have benefited from the natural gas boom, like Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana, have banned municipalities in their states from enacting similar policies.

For now, the boom in production means that the U.S. is currently a net exporter of natural gas, producing more natural gas than it consumes. Production and consumption closely tracked together up until the mid-1980s, at which point consumption rose above production levels and natural gas imports increased. With the rise of fracking in the early 2000s, this trend began to reverse, and by 2017, natural gas production overtook consumption in the U.S., and the country became a net exporter.

But the greatest production increases have been limited to a handful of states. Texas has been a longtime leader in U.S. energy production due to its plentiful oil and natural gas reserves, and the state currently produces 8,288 trillion BTUs each year. Pennsylvania is a more recent beneficiary of the natural gas boom. Natural gas was difficult to extract in the state until horizontal drilling became common around 2008, but Pennsylvania quickly grew to become the second most productive state for natural gas. Texas, Pennsylvania, and other states that have reaped the economic benefits of expanded natural gas production may be most resistant to any transition away from natural gas as an energy source.

Beyond the interests of states that produce a high volume of natural gas, transitioning away from natural gas will also be difficult for states where natural gas is one of the primary sources of energy for consumers. Some states derive more than half of the energy they consume from natural gas, led by Alaska at 57.6%. These states will require affordable alternative energy sources at a wide scale before a transition will be possible.

The data used in this analysis is from the U.S. Energy Information Administration and the U.S. Census Bureau. To determine the states consuming the most natural gas, researchers at Commodity.com calculated total natural gas consumption per person. Researchers also included statistics on total natural gas consumption, the percentage of total state energy consumption derived from natural gas, and the percentage of total U.S. natural gas consumption accounted for by each state.

Here are the states consuming the most natural gas.

State Rank Natural gas consumption (million Btu per person) Total natural gas consumption (trillion Btu) Percentage of total state energy consumption Percentage of all U.S. natural gas consumption
    Alaska     1 484.3 354.3 57.6% 1.1%
    Louisiana     2 425.9 1,979.8 46.1% 6.2%
    Wyoming     3 287.5 166.4 30.8% 0.5%
    Oklahoma     4 217.8 861.8 51.4% 2.7%
    Mississippi     5 195.0 580.2 53.4% 1.8%
   North       Dakota     6 189.5 144.4 21.6% 0.4%
    Texas     7 164.8 4,779.5 33.6% 14.9%
    Alabama     8 152.6 748.1 38.9% 2.3%
    New Mexico     9 145.5 305.1 41.5% 0.9%
    Indiana     10 138.7 933.9 33.6% 2.9%
    Iowa     11 137.0 432.1 26.4% 1.3%
     West Virginia     12 132.8 238.0 28.8% 0.7%
   Pennsylvania     13 130.6 1,671.3 43.8% 5.2%
    Arkansas     14 123.0 371.1 33.9% 1.2%
    South Dakota     15 110.1 97.4 24.2% 0.3%
   United States     – 98.0 32,169.8 32.1% N/A

 

For more information, a detailed methodology, and complete results, you can find the original report on Commodity.com’s website: https://commodity.com/blog/natural-gas-consumption/

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Could Starlink Replace Fixed-Line Broadband for Business?

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Starlink is Elon Musk’s satellite internet project enabled by his extremely successful SpaceX company. It’s a series of satellites, or ‘satellite constellation’ in the words of SpaceX, that will deliver global internet coverage when complete.

Which begs the question. Will Starlink replace fixed-line broadband for business?

What is Starlink?

Starlink has a laudable goal: to provide internet access to anyone, anywhere. 

The satellite constellation will provide internet connectivity across the globe accessible using a satellite dish. So, no matter where you are and what fixed-line speeds you have, you’ll soon have another option.

The project is part of SpaceX, Elon Musk’s commercial answer to NASA. The company is steadily launching satellites into space to build their constellation, with a lot of coverage already in orbit.

Broadband speeds

As speed is so important in broadband, how will Starlink compare to fixed-line connections?

According to the Starlink website, download speeds will be between ‘100 Mb/s and 200 Mb/s’ and upload speeds of ‘around 40Mb/s’.

Compare that to the global average of 56.09Mbps download and 23.56Mbps upload and you’ll see quite the speed advantage.

Broadband latency

One hurdle Starlink has to overcome is latency, or ping time. That’s the delay in transmission between your router and the destination. 

The more the delay, the longer you have to wait between clicking a button or taking an action and seeing it reflected on screen.

Traditionally, satellite broadband has struggled with latency due to the huge distances involved. 

The further internet traffic has to travel, the longer the latency. Light travels at a finite speed and while fast, there is an inevitable delay in sending traffic from your computer to the satellite, across the constellation to a ground station, to the website or app and back again.

Starlink promises ‘latency as low as 20ms in most locations’, which is a significant difference to traditional satellite broadband. 

It is able to achieve this by inserting satellites in a Low Earth Orbit (LEO), while most other satellite broadband orbits much further away. However, the downside of this approach is that you need more satellites to cover the same area, hence why Starlink has to use vast constellations of satellites.

Will Starlink link be the solution for rural businesses?

We would say Starlink could be ‘a’ solution for rural businesses rather than ‘the’ solution. 

Most countries carry out continuous improvements on broadband networks, but it takes time and money.

That time and money is understandably spent in towns and cities first where providers can immediately begin recouping their investment. Rural areas usually come later, much later.

Starlink removes some of that delay.

Rural businesses are important to an economy but provide meager returns on investment. That’s something Starlink could genuinely change.

Around 2% of the UK’s rural businesses have less than 10Mbps broadband with no signs of a change anytime soon.

Starlink offers 10 times that and will be ready soon.

How does the UK compare to other countries for fibre coverage?

The UK currently has 24% full fibre coverage but falls behind many other countries.

Portugal has 77% full fibre coverage and Spain has pledged to reach 100% of ultrafast broadband by 2025. The US currently sits at 43% coverage while Germany sits at around 11% full fibre coverage.

What fixed-line connections are out there for rural businesses?

Fixed-line broadband options are few and far between. Depending on where in the world you live. You can compare fibre broadband deals with Broadband Genie but if none are available, you do have the option of a private leased line, community fibre project, community WiFi project or local fibre cooperative.

Private leased lines are very fast but very expensive. Community projects are not very common and fibre cooperatives or local fibre networks are even less common.

This is an area where Starlink could fulfill a genuine need.

How do the costs compare?

Alongside speed, cost is a primary consideration for any broadband customer. So how do fixed-line and Starlink compare?

Setup costs

Many fixed-line residential and business broadband contracts don’t have setup costs. Any costs incurred by the provider are built into the monthly fee to make them more palatable.

Business options such as leased lines can have setup costs but these are being phased out for the same reasons. 

Starlink doesn’t advertise its setup or running costs but if you pre-order, you’ll see the figure of $600 (£439/€522) used a lot. That will include the satellite dish, WiFi router, cabling and base. That’s a pretty substantial amount compared to the minimal expense required for some other types of broadband.

Monthly costs

The monthly fee is the headline fee we all see when shopping around for broadband deals. 

Monthly costs for fixed-line business broadband vary a lot. It could be as little as £20 (€23/$26) for 50Mbps (UK prices) and go much higher.

A leased line costs from £195 per month (BTnet Express) which is $262 or €232.

Starlink is currently not advertising monthly costs but the pre-order page says that it will cost around £89/€105/$119 per month. 

Whether that fee will include data caps or not remains to be seen. We imagine it will, at least to begin with.

Those prices are not confirmed and may be cheaper in developing countries. It’s difficult to know for sure until the company formally announces pricing.

Is there a way I can reduce the cost of a leased line?

Leased lines are an expensive option for businesses but often the only way to access faster speeds. While many providers are phasing out installation costs, that monthly fee can be significant.

You can reduce the cost of a leased line by sharing it with other businesses. For example, if you work in a building with others, you could have a single leased line shared between you.

This would provide the speed you’re looking for while dividing the cost between however many companies share it.

Can I get Starlink broadband for my business?

Starlink isn’t available everywhere just yet so you may not be able to get it for your business.

The rollout is said to begin soon, with a limited rollout during Q4 2021 in the US. This is a limited rollout open to around 100,000 customers.

Uptake has been so good that there is currently a waiting list of over 500,000 people. This has led Starlink to delay open signups until mid-2022 or 2023. 

A quick check on the pre-order page for the UK gives a date of ‘mid-2022’.

Coverage and availability

Coverage is expanding every time SpaceX launches more satellites but it’s spotty right now. 

Rollout has been delayed somewhat by the ongoing global semiconductor shortages but the company says it is going as fast as it can.

Putting random addresses into the pre-order page gives those 2022 or 2023 dates while others, mainly in the US, gives a different message ‘Starlink is currently at capacity in your area, so your order may not be fulfilled until 2023 or later.’

Your best bet is to put your own address into the ‘Service Address’ box at the top of the Starlink website to see when it will be available in your area.

Starlink and fixed-line business broadband

There is no doubt that Starlink will definitely be a viable alternative to fixed line or mobile broadband, but not yet.

A combination of the huge scope of the project, semiconductor shortages and massive demand means you’re probably going to have to wait a while.

But, if you’re in a rural area or a slow broadband area, you’re probably well used to waiting for things, right?

wind energy production
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U.S. States Producing the Most Wind Energy

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“Meteoric” is one way to describe wind energy’s rise to the top of America’s renewable energy industry.

Amid repeated calls from scientists and activists to undertake measures to curb global warming, lawmakers, politicians, and the energy industry have responded. Foremost in that effort is the call for carbon-free energy production via alternative energy sources like wind and solar. Many states have followed suit, with governors from coast to coast implementing wide-ranging initiatives meant to gradually reduce the carbon footprint of power generation in the coming years.

Wind generation is at the leading edge of the movement toward clean energy production. Fields of wind turbines across the country have slowly started to increase their proportion of total energy production. And just this year, President Joe Biden announced measures meant to accelerate the development of offshore wind energy.

While U.S. offshore wind production currently lags behind that of other developed nations, its onshore capacity is second only to China. Wind energy’s share of total utility-scale electricity generation in the U.S. grew from less than 1% in 1990 to about 8% last year.

In 2019, more than $13 billion was invested in wind power, and the amount of new generation capacity added to the nation’s electrical grids through wind projects was greater than all other sources except natural gas. Driving the investment may be the simple fact that it’s far cheaper to install wind farms than it is to build hydroelectric plants and solar farms. Alongside the value, the federal government subsidized wind construction with tax credits. The result? Wind generation exceeded hydroelectric power for the first time in 2019.

While tax credits and reasonable construction costs have increased wind’s popularity, perhaps its greatest advantage is availability. Wind regularly barrels across the Midwest and the Texas-Oklahoma border at average speeds of 20 to 30 miles per hour, a key speed range, as turbines reach their rated generation capacity when winds hit 26 to 30 miles per hour.

This explains why the Midwest and the West South Central region are home to the top wind-generated electricity producers in the nation. Texas leads the nation in total wind energy production, generating more than twice as much wind electricity as the next state. And while the Lone Star State’s wind energy makes up a significant portion of its renewable energy generation (92%), Kansas’ renewable energy generation relies on wind more than any other state. Kansas’ wind turbines produce more than 99% of its renewable energy and 42% of total.

The data used in this analysis is from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. To determine the states producing the most wind energy, researchers at Commodity.com calculated each state’s annual wind energy production, measured in megawatt-hours. Researchers also calculated the absolute change in wind energy production since 2010, wind’s share of total energy production, and wind’s share of total renewable energy production.

Here are the states producing the most wind energy.

State Rank Annual wind energy production (MWh) Change in wind energy production since 2010 (MWh) Wind share of total energy production Wind share of total renewable energy production

 
Texas     1     83,620,371 57,368,961 17.3% 92.0%
Oklahoma     2     29,008,131 25,200,048 34.0% 87.2%
Iowa     3     26,304,990 17,134,653 42.0% 96.2%
Kansas     4     21,123,539 17,718,474 41.5% 99.6%
Illinois     5     14,459,597 10,005,963 7.8% 96.0%
California     6     13,735,069 7,656,437 6.8% 14.1%
North Dakota     7     11,213,025 7,117,384 27.3% 77.9%
Minnesota     8     10,964,869     6,173,146 18.5% 75.8%
Colorado     9     10,852,376     7,400,525 19.3% 77.3%
Nebraska     10     7,211,092     6,789,447 19.3% 83.2%
New Mexico     11     6,892,087     5,059,905 19.6% 81.1%
Washington     12     6,677,261     1,932,582 6.3% 9.0%
Oregon     13     6,568,889     2,648,882 10.6% 17.0%
Indiana     14     6,216,030     3,281,987 6.1% 85.7%
Michigan     15     5,825,705     5,465,365 5.0% 58.7%
United States     –     295,882,483     201,230,237 7.2% 40.6%

 

For more information, a detailed methodology, and complete results, you can find the original report on Commodity.com’s website: https://commodity.com/blog/states-wind-energy/

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States Producing the Most Solar Energy

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In the first few months of his administration, one of President Joe Biden’s top policy priorities has been addressing the threat of climate change—while also improving infrastructure and creating jobs to generate economic growth. Biden has stated a goal of reaching 100% pollution-free electricity by 2035, which means dramatically scaling up renewable energy production in the U.S. To that end, Biden’s proposed American Jobs Plan would include extensive tax credits, grants, and other investments in clean energy.

One of the potential beneficiaries of this focus is the solar power industry, which is seeing rapid growth as the costs associated with solar decline. For many years, solar power was too expensive to be adopted at scale as a major source of energy production, but this has changed in recent years.

One of the biggest reasons for the decline in costs has been technological innovation. Solar technology has become more reliable and more efficient over time, which lowers the cost of generating energy. As those costs decrease, adoption becomes more common, which allows solar cell manufacturers to achieve economies of scale and lower prices even further.

Government support has also been a major factor: billions in federal investment for renewables during the Great Recession helped spur the technological advances seen in the last decade, and the federal government—along with many states and localities—has long offered tax breaks and other incentives to subsidize household solar adoption.

These factors reached an inflection point in the mid-2000s, and solar production in the U.S. has been growing exponentially ever since. In 2006, solar generated around 507,000 megawatt-hours of energy and represented .01% of U.S. energy generated by the electric power industry. By 2019, solar thermal and photovoltaic accounted for 71,936,822 megawatt-hours—around 140 times more than in 2006—to represent 1.74% of the total.

Solar is still a relatively small part of the U.S.’s overall energy mix but will become an increasingly significant source as solar production continues to accelerate—particularly if the Biden Administration’s climate policies and clean energy investments come to pass. For now, however, renewables overall (17.7% of total electricity generation) still lag behind natural gas (38.4%), coal (23.4%), and nuclear (19.6%). Within the renewable category, solar (9.9% of renewable production) trails wind (40.6%) and hydroelectric (39.5%).

Despite its small but growing role in overall U.S. energy production, solar is a major part of the energy mix in a number of states. The undisputed leader of these states is California, which leads all others both by total solar energy production and the share of electricity derived from solar. California’s total solar energy production is nearly four times that of the runner-up state, North Carolina. Many of the market factors that have made solar more popular nationwide hold in California, too, but the Golden State also has geographic features and a political climate that have made it a solar leader.

In terms of geography, California is one of the U.S. states with the highest levels of insolation, or exposure to the sun. Insolation is a factor for many other leading states for solar production, including Sun Belt locations like Texas, Southwestern states Nevada and Arizona, and Southeastern states North Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. Politically, California’s policymakers have created an environment that all but guarantees heavy reliance on solar energy. For instance, California has one of the most ambitious renewable portfolio standards of any U.S. state, with a goal of generating 60% of energy from renewables by 2030 and 100% of energy from renewables by 2045. Additionally, in 2020, the state began requiring most new homes to include rooftop solar panels.

To find the states where solar production is highest, researchers at Commodity.com used data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s Electricity Power Data. States were ranked by annual solar production for electric power (in megawatt-hours) for 2019. The researchers also calculated the year-over-year change in total solar energy production from 2018–2019, as well as what percentage of total energy production and renewable energy production solar accounts for.

Here are the states producing the most solar energy.

State

 

 Rank

 

 Annual solar energy production (Megawatt-hours)

 

 Change in solar energy production (YoY)

 

 Solar share of total energy production

 

 Solar share of total renewable energy production

 
California    1    28,331,513 +5.0% 14.0% 29.1%
North Carolina    2    7,451,338 +21.9% 5.7% 44.6%
Arizona    3    5,278,019 +2.7% 4.6% 43.0%
Nevada    4    4,810,511 +1.9% 12.1% 42.4%
Texas    5    4,365,125 +36.2% 0.9% 4.8%
Florida    6    3,901,445 +61.7% 1.6% 45.6%
Utah    7    2,186,424 -1.7% 5.6% 51.3%
Georgia    8    2,160,770 +8.3% 1.7% 18.8%
New Mexico    9    1,365,900 +1.3% 3.9% 16.1%
Minnesota    10    1,248,833 +19.8% 2.1% 8.6%
Colorado    11    1,218,220 +14.7% 2.2% 8.7%
New Jersey    12    1,164,721 +17.6% 1.6% 57.9%
Massachusetts    13    1,163,776 +19.0% 5.4% 34.7%
Virginia    14    949,111 +24.4% 1.0% 15.3%
South Carolina    15    858,546 +68.2% 0.9% 14.3%
United States    –    71,936,822 +12.7% 1.7% 9.9%

 

For more information, a detailed methodology, and complete results, you can find the original report on Commodity.com’s website: https://commodity.com/blog/states-solar-energy/

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The Global Solar Panel Market to Skyrocket on the Shift Towards Renewable Energy

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IndexBox has just published a new report: ‘World – Solar Cells and Light-Emitting Diodes – Market Analysis, Forecast, Size, Trends and Insights’. Here is a summary of the report’s key findings.

The global solar panel market accelerates along with the unabated shift towards renewable energy. China, the leader in solar panel exports, will enjoy robust foreign demand while the domestic purchases may slow due to tariff subsidies cut. The U.S. experiences a surge in solar power generation, thanks to the increasing affordability of solar cells and robust suburban construction. The EU, Asia-Pacific, Mexico and Australia are also emerging as the most promising markets due to the swift adoption of solar generation capacities.

Key Trends and Insights

The global solar panel market is expected to skyrocket and exceed $130B by 2030, driven by the increasing shift towards renewable energy worldwide. In 2020, more than 80% of all the world’s newly commissioned electric power was from renewable sources, accounting for near 260 GW of the new capacity. Of this amount, almost a half comes from solar generation. The electricity production from solar generators, according to a forecast by the International Energy Agency, will increase 4.5 times over by 2030, which will be the primary stimulus for the growth of the solar panel market.

The Chinese solar panel industry will continue to thrive amid soaring global demand, despite removing tariff subsidies for new domestic solar energy projects. In China, the world’s leading renewable energy producer, the new solar power capacity grew by 49 GW, which accounts for 36% of the total renewable capacity. Starting from 2021, electricity generated by new solar capacities is to be sold either at local coal-fired power prices or at market prices. This may hamper the domestic solar panel market expansion, but Chinese manufacturers may offset this by rising exports because they dominate global solar panel supplies.

The increased availability of solar panels in the U.S. enables to accelerate the market growth. In 2020, the U.S. commissioned 29 GW of new renewable energy sources, up 80% from a year earlier, of which 15 GW came from solar power. Over the past decade, the cost of solar systems in the United States has dropped by 70%, and the cost of solar-generated electricity has become attractive against alternative sources. In 2020, the base overnight cost of solar photovoltaic energy ranged from $1.248 to $1.612 per kW, which is significantly lower than the base overnight cost of conventional hydropower electricity of $2.769 per kW or geothermal one of $2.772 per kW.

The deployment of distributed solar photovoltaic systems in homes as well as for commercial and industrial buildings appears as a budding market segment worldwide. In the U.S., it is expected to grow rapidly on the backdrop of a boom in suburban single-family construction, highlighting a bright opportunity for investors.

Vietnam is emerging as a promising market, having solar energy capacity skyrocketed over the last two years. To a lesser extent, this is also relevant for the EU, especially Germany, Spain, the Netherlands and Belgium. Australia, Mexico, the UAE and Chile also feature amongst the leaders of the solar energy adoption race. All these markets are to be in the particular focus of global solar energy solution providers who seek new opportunities.

Imports

Global imports of solar cells and light-emitting diodes stood at $54.2B (IndexBox estimates) in 2020. The most prominent rate of growth was recorded in 2014 when imports increased by 6.8% against the previous year. Over the period under review, global imports hit record highs at $55.4B in 2015; however, from 2016 to 2020, imports stood at a somewhat lower figure.

The U.S. ($10.5B) constitutes the largest market for imported solar cells and light-emitting diodes worldwide, comprising 19% of global imports. The second position in the ranking was occupied by Germany ($3.1B), with a 5.6% share of global imports. It was followed by Mexico, with a 2.2% share.

From 2007 to 2020, the average annual growth rate of value in the U.S. totaled +15.1%. The remaining importing countries recorded the following average annual rates of imports growth: Germany (-3.5% per year) and Mexico (+7.9% per year).

Exports

In 2020, solar cells and light-emitting diodes exports totaled $57.5B (IndexBox estimates).

China ($23.8B) remains the largest solar cells and light-emitting diodes supplier worldwide, comprising 41% of global exports. The second position in the ranking was occupied by Malaysia ($5.6B), with a 9.7% share of global exports. It was followed by Japan, with a 6% share.

From 2007 to 2020, the average annual rate of growth in terms of value in China stood at +12.3%. The remaining exporting countries recorded the following average annual rates of exports growth: Malaysia (+14.6% per year) and Japan (-3.5% per year).

Source: IndexBox Platform

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Archives, Global Trade Daily, Utilities

Commercial Gensets Market: Top Regional Factors Augmenting the Industry Forecast 2027

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The global commercial gensets market size is poised to expand at substantial CAGR during the forecast period as the need for a reliable and infallible power supply has been towering amidst the COVID-19 pandemic situation. Apart from an alarming increase in the frequency of natural disasters, several parts of the world are facing unpredictable weather.

This has left hospitals, clinics, laboratories, offices, department and medical stores, and shopping complexes dealing with the persistent problem of power failure. As these commercial spaces have been seeking effective power backup solutions to mitigate losses, the market for hybrid generator sets, electric generator sets, and gas generator sets is likely to see considerable growth through the forthcoming years.

The following eight factors have been pushing the global commercial gensets market forecast:

Low up-front costs of diesel commercial generator sets

Thanks to the need to invest a lesser amount when compared with electric or hybrid generator sets, the deployment of diesel commercial generator sets has been rising across the commercial sphere in Asia. By 2027, APAC commercial gensets market share will have gained considerably owing to their weather-independent, flexible, and scalable operations. As diesel is an easily available fuel even in underdeveloped areas of the emerging economies, diesel commercial gensets appear to be an ideal solution for end-users who want to achieve higher productivity at lower costs.

330 kVA – 750 kVA rated generator sets across Asia

330 kVA – 750 kVA rated commercial generator segment is expected to see substantial growth through 2026, on account of the ability of these solutions to ensure a constant power supply during power failures and interruptions, preventing massive losses. Hospitals, hotels, telecom towers, educational institutes, and construction sites find these generator sets suitable due to their compact designs and superior power density.

Asia Pacific commercial gensets market might also benefit from the rising funding from private and local entities, who have been looking for robust machinery and equipment to address the need for an uninterrupted electricity supply.

Favorable government policies in India

With favorable government policies backing the fast-paced infrastructural activities in the region, the Indian market is likely to contribute consistently toward the overall Asia Pacific commercial gensets industry share through 2027. The booming telecom industry has been pushing the market. For instance, according to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), the Indian subcontinent saw over 1,171.80 million telephone subscriptions as of October 2020. The development of several smart cities across the country is paving the way for further growth.

Work from home trend to accelerate demand

The North America commercial gensets market size is expected to grow steadily since several private as well as federal government employees have been working remotely owing to the focus toward curbing the spread of COVID-19 infection, constant power supply has become more crucial than ever. Heavy losses can be incurred due to power cuts. Moreover, as natural disasters including hurricanes have been hampering electricity supply more frequently, 50-125 kVA rated gensets are likely to see higher adoption across enterprises, cafeterias, shared workspaces, and home offices alike.

Reopening of commercial spaces in North America

As several regions are recording a lesser number of COVID-19 cases, the reopening of shopping malls, cinema halls, public libraries, offices, and showrooms is expected to trigger demand across North America’s commercial gensets industry forecast. The travel industry particularly has been recovering from the coronavirus fast this summer. As domestic flights resume, airports and hotels might see more product adoption. The vaccine rollout has revived numerous industries, who have been seeking to recover from financial losses by installing technologically advanced equipment.

Rising infrastructure investments toward healthcare in Europe

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in the fortification of the healthcare infrastructure, with the EU, governments, and private organizations focusing on optimum digitalization. As Europe has been facing a rising number of COVID-19 cases, the need for advanced solutions such as advanced monitoring and smart control systems across healthcare facilities has been spiraling. The surging geriatric population coupled with the adoption of IoT-enabled devices across hospitals and laboratories is fueling Europe commercial gensets market forecast.

Growing demand from European agriculture sector

As the agriculture sector is undergoing considerable transformation for the last few years, modern farmers are more inclined to install effective power backup solutions than ever before. Manual farming techniques are replaced with mechanized practices, which has increased the dependence on machines and ultimately, electricity. Thus, for the modern farmer, absence of uninterrupted electricity means lower productivity. Consequently, Europe commercial gensets industry forecast is set to gain from the thriving animal husbandry and agriculture sector in the region.

Benefits of gas-powered commercial gensets

With the European Union promoting the use of clean energy fuels in collaboration with several regional governments, the adoption of gas-powered commercial gensets is likely to soar through the next five years. These gensets are not only environmentally compliant due to their lower carbon footprint, but also cost-efficient. They have a high lifespan and a reliable performance. Simultaneously, Europe commercial gensets market outlook can benefit from the trend of installing ecofriendly, gaseous powered equipment across the industrial sector in the region.

Some of the leading commercial gensets manufactures and suppliers in the global market include Kirloskar Oil Engine, SDMO, Powermax, Mahindra Powerol, Powerica, Yamaha Corporation, Cummins, Mitsubishi Power, Kohler, Ingersoll Rand, Siemens, Caterpillar, Siemens, and Generac Holdings.

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Best Renewable Energy Stocks in 2021: A Survey by Paul Harmaan

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The global economy nowadays is pivoting towards renewable energy, leaving fossil fuels behind. According to Paul Haarman, the economy is evolving and finding ways to adapt to modern technology, changing the whole world and making it more efficient. The various green energy sources that it was planning to adopt vary from solar energy to geothermal energy, from wind to biomass, and many more.

For the economy to convert to clean renewable, there will be a need for a strong financial back which is possible only when we use the economic prowess of renewable energy, and this is only possible through their stocks. So let us go in-depth to understand a few of those energy stocks.

Stocks for Top Renewable Energy

According to Paul Harmaan, various energy stocks like biomass, wind, solar, geothermal, etc., are present, which could support fast-forwarding the clean energy conversion for the economy. First, however, we will look for two of the best stocks where you should invest your money to get the best returns

First Solar

First Solar is one of the top leaders responsible for developing efficient thin-film solar panels. The company produces low-cost electricity per watt compared to the traditional silicon-based panels. Their solar panels are efficient mainly because they work well in extreme hotness and humidity conditions and work efficiently in shedding snow and debris quickly. These few features make them the most ideally used solar panels for utility-scale applications.

Moreover, the panel manufacturing sector of the first solar acts like a strong balance sheet responsible for making First Solar the number one choice and making it stand out.

NextEra Energy

NextEra Energy is responsible for two businesses which it runs efficiently. One business shows the efficient use of the competitive energy segment and is responsible for generating electricity. Besides this, it also transports natural gas under fix-free agreements that are beneficial for the long run. At the same time, the other one revolves around the rate-regulated electric utilities that NextEra Energy takes responsibility for and distributes that power to various businesses and consumers.

One of the highest credit ratings with the support of the largest electric utilities makes the NextEra Energy-efficient in working its stable operations responsibly. The two efficient businesses conducted by NextEra Energy are solely credited, and why shouldn’t they? The combined powers of both businesses help produce extra units of energy from natural resources like that of the wind and the sun, which any other company in the world is incapable of, making it a unique company.

Future of the Top Renewable Energy stocks

The effective and efficient shift by the world economy from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources or clean energy sources has created a massive opportunity for a variety of investors to look into the profits. At the same time, they understand the concept of how these sources can change the world and turn it into a better place. Suppose there is a need to find the future of these top renewable energy stocks. In that case, the most important thing to look for is the balance sheet of the company and the solar energy-focused growth profile, as these two main factors are highly responsible for generating higher returns in the future both for the world and the investors.

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The European Domestic Appliance Market Expands Rapidly, Adapting to New Energy Efficiency Requirements

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IndexBox has just published a new report: ‘EU – Domestic Appliances – Market Analysis, Forecast, Size, Trends and Insights’. Here is a summary of the report’s key findings.

The second half of 2020 saw an unprecedented increase in demand for household appliances, as during the lockdown people started to use domestic equipment more intensively. While enjoying buoyant growth, producers are to adjust to higher standards in terms of energy efficiency and reducing waste.

Key Trends and Insights

In April 2020, Eurostat data indicates the EU manufacture of electric domestic appliances fell by 55.3% against the same period of 2019. In the second half of 2020, however, the production accelerated, enabling the total 2020’s result to remain near $40B (IndexBox’s estimate in wholesale price). During the lockdown, people started to use domestic equipment more intensively, focusing on the improvement and hygiene of their environment.

Since 2020, e-commerce emerged among key domestic appliance sales channels. Against Covid restrictions and heightened demand, it even led to delays in deliveries in some cases, until sellers adapted to new delivery conditions.

Following the European Green Deal, the energy efficiency of domestic appliances is seeing continuous improvement. Over the last two years, there have been notable advances in terms of fridge, TV and domestic fan appliances. Energy-efficient LED lamps and solar panels are increasingly being used in domestic appliance manufacture. As of March 2021, the EU introduced new energy efficiency labelling standards. The new labelling scale is now much stricter than its previous counterpart and has been designed so that very few appliances can be awarded the ‘A’ efficiency standard mark. That increases the scope for more energy-efficient products to be included under this standard in the future.

Manufacturers are now obliged under the EU standards to provide a 10-year warranty for equipment. This is to benefit users with increasing equipment reliability and reduced waste. On the other hand, it may lead to rising prices for appliances in the future, as manufacturers will incorporate the cost of maintaining the stock of appliance spare parts for 10 years into the selling price.

Germany, the UK and Italy to Remain the Main Consuming Countries

The countries with the highest volumes of domestic appliances consumption in 2019 were the UK (226M units), Germany (207M units) and Italy (185M units), together comprising 43% of total consumption. France, Spain, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Sweden and Hungary lagged somewhat behind, together comprising a further 45% (IndexBox estimates).

From 2012 to 2019, the biggest increases were in the Czech Republic, while domestic appliance consumption for the other leaders experienced more modest paces of growth.

In value terms, Germany ($8B), the UK ($6.1B) and France ($6B) were the countries with the highest levels of market value in 2019, with a combined 44% share of the total market. Italy, Spain, Poland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden, Romania, the Czech Republic and Hungary lagged somewhat behind, together accounting for a further 41%.

The countries with the highest levels of domestic appliances per capita consumption in 2019 were the Netherlands (4.81 units per person), the Czech Republic (4.34 units per person) and Belgium (4.34 units per person).

In 2019, Germany (313M units), distantly followed by the UK (189M units), France (168M units), the Netherlands (132M units), Italy (105M units) and Spain (74M units) were the largest importers of domestic appliances, together achieving 69% of total imports. Poland (62M units), Belgium (54M units), Hungary (41M units), Sweden (37M units), Romania (35M units), the Czech Republic (32M units) and Austria (30M units) held a minor share of total imports.

From 2012 to 2019, the most notable rate of growth in terms of purchases, amongst the leading importing countries, was attained by Romania, while imports for the other leaders experienced more modest paces of growth.

In value terms, Germany ($9.8B), France ($6.5B) and the UK ($5.6B) constituted the countries with the highest levels of imports in 2019, with a combined 44% share of total imports. These countries were followed by Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Poland, Belgium, Sweden, Austria, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Romania, which together accounted for a further 43% (IndexBox estimates).

Source: IndexBox AI Platform