Green Nations: White Papers and Technological Innovations Are One Thing, but Implementation Is Another. So Which Countries Are Committed to Switching to Renewable Energy? (Renewable-Energy Special)

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Spain Ten years ago, Spain had virtually no renewable-energy capacity, but today it's a big success story for wind power, capable of producing just under 5,000 megawatts. It's home to Gamesa, the world's fourth-largest wind-turbine manufacturer, and BP Solar's main European manufacturing base. Assisted by high electricity tariffs and supportive governments, Spain's biomass and solar industries are also growing.

Germany The global leader for wind and solar power, with the biomass and fuel-cell industries close behind. Germany has more than 12,000MW of capacity--more than 5 per cent of the country's electricity. This is remarkable, given that its wind resources aren't the best in Europe. Its '100,000 solar roofs' programme has been a huge success and is ahead of target. Critical to the success has …