Total Ramps Up Renewables

03/05/2020

Earlier this year, Total announced not one, not two, but three new renewables projects, in India, Spain and Qatar, building up to an impressive 5 GW of projected capacity. To put this into perspective, at the end of 2019, the Group’s global renewable electricity generation capacity was 3 GW. This is a clear signal that we are more than ever on track to meet our 2025 objective of 25 GW of gross renewable capacity.

Total Ramps Up Renewables

The Sustainable Development Scenario (SDS) of the International Energy Agency (IEA) implies an energy mix in 2040 that relies more heavily on renewables, which would soar to 30% of the total, led by a jump in the use of energy sources such as solar, wind and modern biomass.

Our ambition to attain 25 GW of gross renewable electricity generation capacity by 2025 is guided by the dual challenge of climate change and growing demand for electricity. Given the constant rise in energy consumption projected over the coming years, being able to generate electricity from renewable sources is crucial.

To achieve our ambition, we need to develop new businesses and new activities, and to keep on innovating in the area of renewable energies, for example through new investments and partnerships. 2020 is a year that will perfectly showcase this strategy, with new solar projects in Qatar, India and Spain representing close to 5 GW of capacity once operational.

Of course, when talking about renewables, it is impossible not to raise the matter of energy storage, which is a major challenge for these energy sources. For renewables to be developed on a wide scale, the electricity produced must be able to be stored and delivered when it is most needed.

Total addresses this challenge through our affiliate Saft, a world-leading battery manufacturer, whose lithium-ion batteries can store large amounts of electricity in a small amount of space. This technology is pivotal in our ambition to become the responsible energy major.