Global renewable energy expansion: Philippines surge, China storage targets, and Ørsted deployment

The Philippines saw a 5x surge in rooftop solar inquiries after Iran war hikes energy costs, with fast-tracked 1.4 GW renewables. China's 15th Five-Year Plan prioritizes battery storage with capacity payments and firm capacity requirements (3.5 TW renewable, 136 GW storage by end-2025). Ørsted commissioned a co-located solar+battery project in Texas using Tesla Megapacks, supporting ERCOT reliability. IRENA reported record 9.8% renewable growth in 2024. ABB partnered with LevelTen Energy on renewable procurement, signaling maturing market infrastructure. These developments signal accelerating global deployment despite infrastructure and policy challenges.