WMO Technical Webinar on National Renewable Energy Atlas 2025

World Meteorological Organization (WMO) hosted a Technical Webinar on 25 September 2025 to present the recent progress and future direction of the National Renewable Energy Atlas initiative. Chaired by WMO’s Climate and Energy Lead Roberta Boscolo, the one-hour session featured opening remarks by Johan Stander, Senior Director of Services, project overview, case studies, technical presentation, a live demonstration, and aQ&A session. 

The National Renewable Energy Atlas, led by WMO, is part of WMO’s broader effort to strengthen climate services for the energy sector and to support members in planning their renewable energy transition. An energy atlas is a tool that integrates meteorological, hydrological, and climate datasets to map solar, wind, and hydropower resources, while also identifying risks and long-term climate impacts. By providing high-resolution maps and climate projections, the Atlas enables governments, energy stakeholders, and investors to make evidence-based decisions on energy policy and infrastructure. 

In his opening remarks in the webinar, Johan Stander highlighted the importance of the Atlas initiative as a central part of WMO’s commitment to support its members in advancing their renewable energy transition. He emphasized the role of the Atlas as a key instrument for strengthening climate services and informing national energy planning. 

Dr Sara Dal Gesso, CEO of  Amigo, then provided an overview of the project and its methodology, stressing the importance of a bottom-up, co-development approach in which National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHSs) act as the authoritative national data providers. She noted that WMO complements this national ownership by offering methodological guidance, coordination, and capacity development. Her presentation also shared the results of Phase 1 pilots in 2024, conducted in Chile and Iran (solar), Malawi (hydropower), and Costa Rica (wind). Building on these pilots, she explained that Phase 2 in 2025 expanded to Cuba, Tanzania, and Croatia, incorporating advanced machine learning techniques, broader datasets, and climate-informed planning. 

The session also featured the Cuban case study presented by Alfredo Roque Rodríguez and Dayanis Patino Avila of INSMET, Cuba.  

Their work produced high-resolution climatologies of wind speed and solar radiation (GHI) by downscaling ERA5 reanalysis data, applying bias correction with local station observations, and integrating satellite inputs from GOES-16/Heliosat. This methodology addressed the limitations of coarse global datasets, particularly in coastal and complex terrain areas, and generated monthly and annual maps designed for integration into Cuba’s SIMSEC power-sector decision-support system. 

Finally, Alessandro Moser, Data Scientist at Amigo, delivered a technical demonstration showcasing practical tools developed within the Atlas initiative. These included open Jupyter notebooks, reproducible workflows, and training modules aimed at building national capacities. 

The webinar demonstrated that the National Renewable Energy Atlas is far more than a mapping tool. It is a decision-support platform that links data, technology, and policy, representing an essential step toward accelerating the renewable energy transition worldwide through strong national ownership and international collaboration. 

• 🔗 WMO Energy Portal: https://energymeteorology.info/ 
• 🔗 Atlas webinar materials and recording: https://energymeteorology.info/2025-wmo-technical-webinar-on-national-renewable-energy-atlas/