The year 2023 marked a significant milestone as renewable energy surpassed 30% of the world’s electricity, driven by rapid rise in wind and solar power, according to a report on Global Electricity Review 2024 by Ember. The comprehensive review of global electricity data covers 80 countries, which represent 92% of the world’s electricity demand, as well as historical data for 215 countries.
The report found that the world may be on the brink of driving down fossil fuel generation despite the increasing electricity demand. Clean electricity has notably curbed the growth of fossil fuels by nearly two-thirds over the past decade, with renewables growing from 19% of electricity in 2000 to more than 30% of global electricity in 2023.
Solar energy led the charge in electricity growth, adding more than twice as much new electricity generation as coal in 2023. This marks the 19th consecutive year of solar being the fastest-growing source of electricity source and its second year as the largest contributor to new electricity, surpassing wind power.
Projections suggest a 2% decline in global fossil fuel generation in the coming year, driven by the rise in clean electricity. However, fossil fuel still maintain a significant presence in the global energy consumption, particularly in transport, heavy industry and heating. As highlighted by a separate study from the Energy Institute, fossil fuels including oil, gas and coal made up 82% of the world’s primary energy.
In line with efforts to combat climate change, world leaders are aiming to increase renewables to 60% of global electricity by 2030 under an agreement at the UN’s COP28 climate change conference in December. Achieving this goal would require countries to triple their current renewable electricity capacity within the next six years, potentially cutting power sector emission nearly in half.
Source: theguardian.com
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