Europe is trailing behind the US in turning blue chip companies green through wind and other renewables.
RES Americas chief executive Glen Davis told the EWEA 2015 conference in Paris this morning the change in business models in the US is an important trend that must be encouraged on the other side of the Atlantic.
“This is a very powerful trend. Customers are making decisions that drive the market, they are the ones pushing this,” he said.
“The governments (in Europe) are making the decisions as to what is the right amount of renewable power,” Davis added. “In the US the customers are saying at the price that renewable power is available, the government has undershot how much we want.”
The conference heard that despite the economic downturn in recent years, wind power has remained one of the fastest growing industrial segments in the world with almost $100bn invested in 2014 alone.
ERG Renew Spa managing director Massimo Derchi said: “The FiT that Europe used to develop renewables has been very successful. Whether the sector has now become so mature that these need to be reviewed is probably reasonable. The dynamics have changed.”
He added that he believes the new introduction of auctions around Europe is “excellent” but there needs to be “clear rules” for taking it forward.
“There has been successful growth in countries where auctions have been introduced. It’s is an excellent instrument, but the devil is in the detail. It absolutely has to be managed correctly. You have to look at how it’s organised as well as keeping in mind the level of expectation.”
Image: Google is among the companies embracing renewables (Google)
