The year 2020 recorded a dramatic surge in the solar power sector in India, China, and the US. The global call for more stringent emission guidelines and a pledge to ban fossil fuel-powered cars in the UK by 2030 are some of the chief breakthroughs achieved in 2020. Adding to that, China, one of the leading polluters of the world, has also decided to limit the pollution from steel industries. However, despite the underlined initiatives and strict guidelines around the globe for clean energy, global energy-related CO2 emissions rose 60 million tonnes last December compared to 2019, as suggested by EIA data.
Amid rising pollution levels, naturally occurring geothermal, wind, tidal, solar, and electric energy are being hailed as the eventual fate of the planet's energy needs. These energy sources include solar cells, wind turbine magnets and electric vehicles (EVs) cells which are made up of a significant amount of rare earth elements (REE). China holds the largest reserves of REEs globally, whereas India, Australia, Vietnam, Russia, and Indonesia are also present on the leading producers' list of the world.