The Un-American Future of Green Energy
- uIMPACT
- Oct 14
- 4 min read
Updated: Oct 30
We’ve all heard the “Green is dead!” rhetoric coming out of Washington lately. The messaging comes in fragments but with remarkable consistency—midnight tweets, statements, speeches—where wind turbines are called “windmills,” and the entire renewable sector “ridiculous", "fraudulent", and "wasteful", with no facts or science to back the claims.
The psychological or political reasoning behind this rhetoric (if “reasoning” is even the right word) is beyond the scope of this article.
What we argue here is different:
The Green transition is alive and kicking, and countries around the world are doubling down on renewable energy—not merely for climate reasons, but as a deliberate economic strategy.
Who Is Investing in Green Energy?
The Big Movers
In 2024, the European Union generated approximately 47% of its electricity from renewable sources. The Union aims to achieve a 42.5% share of renewables in its total energy consumption by 2030. In 2025, Germany - Europe's largest economy approved a €500 billion Infrastructure and Climate Neutrality Fund, enabling significant investment in projects essential for achieving net-zero emissions by 2045 and 80 % renewable electricity by 2030. Recent geopolitical developments, which link European energy independence to security, make it unlikely that the Continent's green ambitions will be scaled back.
China installed a record 341 GW of solar and 80 GW of wind in 2024, solidifying its position as the world’s largest producer of renewable electricity. Major battery storage projects are enhancing grid stability. At the same time, China’s control of 69% of rare earth mine production in 2024, and nearly half of the world’s reserves, underpins its dominant position in solar panels, batteries, and electric vehicles.
Ambitious green energy projects now take place in countries from the Global South:
India added a record 25 GW of solar in 2024 and is pursuing 500 GW of renewable capacity by 2030. The Gujarat Solar Park alone targets 30 GW.
Brazil’s electricity mix in 2024 was 88% renewables, 24% of which was solar, with hydropower forming the renewable backbone.
In Kenya, over 75 % of its electricity already comes from renewables, thanks to geothermal, hydro, and wind. The Olkaria VII geothermal project (80 MW) and floating solar on the Kamburu Dam show how it’s expanding generation without new fossil capacity. The KOSAP mini-grid program is bringing off-grid solar to 1.3 million rural residents.
Once almost fully dependent on imported fuels, Bangladesh has tendered 2.6 GW of new solar and aims for 6 GW total by 2025. Solar now makes up three-quarters of its renewable capacity, and its rooftop-solar “Solar Home Systems” initiative has electrified more than 6 million households.
Morocco is home to the Noor Ouarzazate Solar Complex, one of the world’s largest concentrated solar plants (580 MW). Morocco already gets 40 % of its electricity from renewables and targets 52 % by 2030. The country now exports clean electricity to Europe via interconnections with Spain.
Chile targets 70% renewable electricity by 2030, with the 480 MW Atacama Solar Plant—its largest to date—and a national Green Hydrogen Strategy positioning it as a regional leader in clean energy.
Vietnam is Southeast Asia’s surprise clean-energy powerhouse. Thanks to aggressive feed-in tariffs, Vietnam’s solar capacity jumped from near zero in 2017 to over 20 GW in 2024. The government now plans 30 % renewables by 2030, backed by major offshore wind projects.
Namibia is emerging as one of the frontrunners in harnessing renewable energy to produce competitively priced green hydrogen for export. It’s also rolling out solar and wind projects to meet domestic needs and power the hydrogen sector.
Uzbekistan – Central Asia’s breakout renewables case- has introduced over 2 GW of solar in 2024 with help from the World Bank and Masdar (UAE), and has a roadmap for 12 GW of renewables by 2030.
These aren’t isolated national or even regional experiments but a structural global shift.
Even the Gulf states—the very embodiment of oil wealth—are making green commitments: the UAE aims for 50 % clean power by 2050, while Saudi Arabia, Oman, and Qatar are investing heavily in solar, wind, and hydrogen projects both domestically and, through sovereign wealth funds, are backing renewable projects in Africa and Asia.
For developing countries, green energy isn’t a luxury or a moral stance; it’s an economic necessity and a geopolitical opportunity. Many of these nations are leapfrogging the fossil-fuel and centralized-grid stage entirely, using decentralized solar to achieve energy independence and electrify their growing populations.
Green energy projects are supported by strategic national commitments, financial incentives, and targeted policies.
Until recently, all those incentives were dwarfed by the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). And while the Act is still in effect, the rhetoric surrounding it and the phasing out of many federal tax incentives after the signing of the oddly named "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" into law in mid-2025, the future and the impact of IRA are uncertain.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) just last week slashed its forecast for renewable energy capacity growth in the U.S. this decade by 50%.
The Conclusion: Look Beyond the Noise
The green energy transition is creating jobs and economic prosperity, securing market share in next-generation industries, and is increasingly a question of national security. It is a race to dominate the energy systems of the future, a new industrial revolution of sorts. And the United States, it seems, is choosing to sit this one out.
As a result, the rest of the world is adapting fast and learning to push ahead without the US. It is precisely that push that will determine the future of renewables- what gets built, installed, and financed.
Look at the actions, not the noise, and, most importantly, at least for now, look in places other than the US.
The lesson is simple: For a global perspective, ignore the noisy rhetoric from Washington. It might be disproportionately loud, but it is not reflective of actions and attitudes around the world.
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