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Global investments in renewable energy reach half-year record

Aug 26, 2025, 8:39am EDT
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An offshore wind farm, seen from Walton-on-the-Naze, southern Britain
Toby Melville/File Photo/Reuters

Global investment in renewable energy reached $386 billion in the first six months of 2025, a half-year record in spite of headwinds for some sectors and regions.

Investors are becoming more scrupulous about onshore wind and utility-scale solar projects, demanding to see prospects for stronger returns before committing capital to new projects, according to analysis from BloombergNEF. And investment across all renewable technologies fell precipitously in the US, down 36% compared to the second half of 2024 as the Trump administration and Congress raised numerous new barriers to construction.

But those dropoffs were more than offset by the still-booming global market for small-scale solar, and a particular influx of capital to renewables projects in Europe — a sign that “developers and investors may be reallocating capital out of the US and into Europe,” the report said. But China still dominates, claiming 44% of new renewables investments so far this year.

A chart showing global investments in renewable energy.
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