The IEA’s Electricity Market Report 2023 said that while power generation continues to contribute the most CO2 emissions of any sector in the global economy, it is also leading the world’s transition to net zero emissions with a massive ramping up of renewables like wind and solar power.
The IEA said that low emissions sources such as wind would cover “almost all growth in global energy demand” up to 2025.
“Renewables and nuclear energy will dominate the growth of global electricity supply over the next three years, together meeting on average more than 90% of the additional demand,” according to the report’s executive summary.
“China accounts for more than 45% of the growth in renewable generation in the period 2023-2025, followed by the EU with 15%.”
Global headwinds in 2022 such as the war in Ukraine stunted global growth in energy demands to 2%, the report said. Nevertheless rising demand — particularly in Asia — will spur growth in global electricity demand over the next three years to 2025.
Global growth in demand
Over 70% of the anticipated growth in global energy demand to 2025 will come from China, India, and southeast Asia, the report said. Asia is thus expected to account for half of all global electricity consumption by 2025, and China alone will account for one third.
Energy demand from fossil fuels such as gas and coal is expected to flat line over that period and the IEA said that corresponding global CO2 emissions are set to plateau through 2025, after reaching an all-time high in 2022.
Meanwhile global installed “variable” renewables including wind energy grew at a faster rate in 2022 than in the five preceding years, the report said.
“Global installed capacity of renewables is estimated to have increased at a faster year-on-year rate of almost 11% in 2022 compared to the average 9% growth seen in the 2017-2021 period. Variable renewables – wind and solar PV – continued to see strong growth in combined capacity, up nearly 18%.”
And demands from renewable energy sources including wind will grow in the next three years too according to the IEA: “The share of renewables in the global power generation mix is forecast to rise from 29% in 2022 to 35% in 2025.”
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