100 companies reducing emissions by 71%

The only available effective climate action is about 100 companies reducing 71% of emissions. We know 100 fossil fuel companies are responsible for 71% of fossil fuel emissions. Emissions need to stop. Society needs to stop burning rocks. The disruption, according to Tony Seba of RethinkX is from 8 different technologies. The 4 technologies that enable the energy disruptions are:

  • Solar panels to capture energy
  • Wind turbines to capture energy
  • Batteries to store energy
  • Electric Vehicles for transport
  • AI and Smart Grids to adapt to dispatchable energy.

Disruption by Solar and Batteries

Bill Nussey of Freeing Energy says the disruption is from centralised power generation to solar + battery. Many fail to recognise the renewable energy transition is from corporate ownership to individual ownership, not just from centralised to localised.

100 Companies Reducing 71% of Emissions through solar and batteries
Figure 4.10 and 4.11 from Bill Nussey Freeenergy.com

Change from Primary Energy to Useful Energy

Part of this transition is energy efficiency. Fossil fuel is inefficient. Only about 50% of energy is needed with electrification. Estimates of renewable energy needs are overstated.

Which 100 Companies Reducing 71% of Emissions

Solar Companies- Generating Emission-Free Electricity

CompanyCountry of HeadquartersApproximate Capacity (2022/2023) (GW)Website
JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd.China54.38https://www.jinkosolar.com/
Canadian Solar Inc.Canada29.38https://www.canadiansolar.com/
LONGi Solar Technology Co., Ltd.China39.72https://www.longi.com/
JA Solar Holdings Co., Ltd.China42.2https://www.jasolar.com/html/en/
First Solar, Inc.United States7.2https://www.firstsolar.com/
Hanwha Q CELLS Co., Ltd.South Korea22.6https://us.qcells.com/
Trina Solar LimitedChina50.8https://www.trinasolar.com/us
SunPower CorporationUnited States5.9https://us.sunpower.com/
Sunrun Inc.United StatesN/A (Solar installer, not manufacturer)https://www.sunrun.com/
Enphase Energy, Inc.United StatesN/A (Microinverter manufacturer)https://enphase.com/
SolarEdge Technologies, Inc.United StatesN/A (Smart inverter manufacturer)https://www.solaredge.com/us/
SMA Solar Technology AGGermanyN/A (Inverter manufacturer)https://www.sma.de/en/
Meyer Burger Technology AGSwitzerland1.4https://www.meyerburger.com/en-us/
AU Optronics Corp.Taiwan4.5https://www.auo.com/
CSUN (ChengSi New Energy Technology Group Co., Ltd.)China8https://www.csunsolartech.com/
Shunfeng International Clean Energy LimitedChina4https://www.sf-international.com/
Talesun Solar Co., Ltd.China8.5https://www.talesun-solar.com/
Capacity figures are based on various sources and may not be completely accurate or standardized.
“N/A” indicates companies that manufacture other solar components besides panels.

Wind Turbine Companies- Generating Emission-Free Electricity

CompanyCountryInstalled Capacity (2014-2023) (GW)Website
Vestas Wind Systems A/SDenmark93.4https://www.vestas.com/en
Siemens Gamesa Renewable EnergySpain88.3https://www.siemensgamesa.com/en-gb
Goldwind Science & Technology Co., Ltd.China78.1https://www.goldwind.com.cn/en/
Ming Yang Smart Energy Group Co., Ltd.China67.2https://en.myse.com.cn/
GE Renewable EnergyUnited States64.5https://www.gerenewableenergy.com/
Enercon GmbHGermany58.4https://www.enercon.de/en/
Nordex SEGermany54.2https://www.nordex-group.com/en/
Shanghai Electric Group Co., Ltd.China48.3https://en.sec.com.cn/
Envision GroupChina45.1https://envision-group.com/
CSIC Haizhuang Heavy Machinery Co., Ltd.China42.7https://english.csichz.com/
Sources:
GWEC Global Wind Report 2023
Company websites
Notes:
Installed capacity figures are based on new installations and may not reflect total market share.
This table is not an exhaustive list of all wind turbine manufacturers.

Top Battery Companies Enabling Storage

Storage of dispatchable renewable energy is a key technology enabler. The technology to change from synchronous production to asynchronous demand has enabled intermittent capture of electricity from wind and solar to met customer demand.

We grow wheat, harvest it and store in silos for a year. But we eat bread daily. Silos provide storage.

Rain falls in the dam. We use it for drinking water when we need to. Dams, groundwater provide storage

Electricity has been for 120 year synchronous. Use it or lose it. But batteries that can store daily or monthly amounts are now possible.

100 Companies Reducing 71% of Emissions
CompanyCountryInstalled Capacity (2014-2023) (GWh)Website
CATL (Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Ltd.)China580+https://www.catl.com/en/
BYD Company Ltd.China480+https://www.byd.com/en/
LG ChemSouth Korea320+https://www.lgchem.com/eng/
Panasonic CorporationJapan280+https://global.panasonic.com/global/
Samsung SDISouth Korea220+https://www.samsung.com/us/semiconductor/global/
SK Innovation (formerly SK-On)South Korea180+[[invalid URL removed]]([invalid URL removed])
Tesla, Inc.United States160+https://www.tesla.com/
CoslightChina140+https://www.coslight.com/en/
AESC CorporationUnited States120+https://www.aesc.com/
Sunwoda Electronic Co., Ltd.China100+https://www.sunwoda.com/en/
Installed capacity figures are estimates based on various sources and may not be completely accurate or standardized.
Some companies may focus on different battery types or market segments, making direct comparisons challenging.
This table does not represent a definitive ranking of battery manufacturers, as rankings can vary depending on criteria like specific battery chemistries or regional focus.
Storage enables dispatchable energy.

Rate of Change

Various organisations predict when fossil fuel demand will fall, emissions stop rising and start falling. The IEA in their predictions from 1994 through to 2016 have a view. RMI has another.

IEA projections
100 Companies Reducing 71% of Emissions by 2050
RMI Energy Outlook

Electric Vehicle Manufacturers

These manufacturers are leading the change to eliminating emissions from the transport sector.

CompanyCountryTotal Electric Cars Sold (2014-2023) (Million Units)Website
Tesla, Inc.United States3.5https://www.tesla.com/
SAIC MotorChina2.2https://www.saicmotor.com/en/
Volkswagen GroupGermany2https://www.volkswagenag.com/en.html
StellantisNetherlands1.8https://www.stellantis.com/en
General MotorsUnited States1.7https://www.gm.com/
Hyundai Motor GroupSouth Korea1.6https://www.hyundai.com/worldwide/en
Nissan-Renault-Mitsubishi AllianceFrance1.5https://www.nissan-global.com/EN/
Ford Motor CompanyUnited States1.4https://www.ford.com/
Honda Motor Co., Ltd.Japan1.3https://global.honda.com/
BMW GroupGermany0.9[[invalid URL removed]]([invalid URL removed])
Top EV companies by vehicles sold by 2022/23 Sources:
JATO Dynamics
EV Sales
IHS Markit
Notes:
Sales figures are estimates and may vary depending on the source.
This table only includes pure electric car sales and excludes hybrid electric vehicles.

More Reading

  1. RMI Global Energy Transformation Guide: Electricity 2023 https://rmi.org/global-energy-transformation-guide/
  2. RMI X-Change: Electricity https://rmi.org/insight/x-change-electricity/