A roundup of the challenges the renewable energy market is facing

You might think of renewable energy as a burgeoning industry, particularly if you heard the stories about its resilience in the wake of the pandemic when other sectors were struggling not to buckle under the extreme pressures. That’s not to say that the global crisis didn’t present unique challenges for renewable energy companies, all the while facing existing obstacles.

The COP26 climate change conference is set to shake the renewable energy market up, and here are just some of the major challenges that are likely to be debated at the conference.

Carbon-neutrality

With so many renewable energy buzzwords flying around, the terms can easily be mixed up. A renewable energy source refers to an origin that is naturally replenished over time. This doesn't mean to say that carbon isn't released into the atmosphere, and this is where net-zero processes come into play.

Net-zero processes ensure that carbon emissions are countered by extracting that exact amount of greenhouse gases through carbon capture and storage (CCS), forest expansion, depositing carbon into the soil, wetland restoration and other innovative methods. Achieving a carbon-neutral state is essential if we are to limit the temperature rise of the planet to 1.5 C, but as it stands, the processes are in their infancy years and therefore costly. This takes us on to the next challenge - finances.

Finances

Making renewable energy accessible to the masses is inevitably going to be a big hurdle for the industry. Building the infrastructure and developing new renewable energy technologies both come with a huge financial cost.

While many governments have recognised that investing in green energy is one way to build back the economy following Covid-19, not all are quick to hand out grants, introduce tax credits and invest in research and development. As a result, startups and some long-standing renewable energy companies are crowdfunding from smaller investors to raise the capital they need to get their projects underway.

Energy storage

A grid that is entirely reliant on renewables could potentially become overwhelmed. Yet, the UK government announced ambitious plans to power every home across the nation using offshore wind energy. While great strides are being made to increase offshore wind capacity and improve the integration of renewable sources, there remains the issue of energy storage.

Land use

It might not be the first thing that you think of when considering the clean energy industry, but to get to a position where renewables are powering the world, we need to use our land strategically. If our population continues to grow at the current pace, it's predicted we'll need 50% more energy by 2050. Not only do we need to find the land that will work best for solar farms and wind farms, but we need to balance this with finding the land that is optimal to build homes and grow food.

Finding the right talent

As the market becomes more specialised, there's a growing need for professionals who have a distinct set of skills. Couple this with the fact that there are more renewable energy projects springing up all around the globe, and what you get are companies not knowing where to look to find the right talent and then having to entice them away from competitors. The answer? A renewable energy recruitment agency that has carefully built a network of skilled professionals.

Find out how our renewable energy recruitment team can help you

At Quanta, we have a team of specialist renewable energy recruitment consultants. With around 20 years’ experience helping candidates find their next renewable energy job, they know the importance of understanding a role and sourcing the candidate who is the perfect fit. Whether you’re looking for the top talent in the industry to fill a position within your company or are on the hunt for your next role, look no further.

Explore our renewable energy hub to find out more about our services and browse our latest roles in offshore wind, onshore wind, energy-from-waste, heavy lift and more.