The global clean energy industry is running at “accelerated speed”.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) has released its World Energy Outlook for 2024. The report shows that the global renewable energy industry has seen unprecedented growth in 2023, with more than 560 gigawatts (GW) of new installed renewable energy capacity. It is expected that by 2030, the global installed capacity of renewable energy is expected to exceed about 25% of the sum of the currently established development targets of various countries, which is sufficient to meet the increase in global electricity demand. 2023, China's new installed capacity of renewable energy accounted for about 60% of the world's total installed capacity of new renewable energy, which makes an important contribution to the global energy transition and the building of a clean and beautiful world.

Countries continue to invest more in clean energy

“In the world's energy history, we have witnessed the coal era and the oil era, and now we are rapidly entering the electricity era.” The International Energy Agency outlined the latest picture of the global energy transition in its report.

The report points out that over the past 10 years, the share of fossil fuels in the global energy mix has gradually declined from 82 percent in 2013 to 80 percent in 2023, while global energy demand has increased by 15 percent over the same period, with 40 percent of the growth coming from clean energy. Thanks to technological progress, improved energy efficiency and industrial restructuring, global energy intensity has been declining.

The International Energy Agency's report shows that nearly $2 trillion of investment flows into the clean energy sector every year, almost double the total investment in oil, gas and coal. At present, about 140 countries around the world have formulated policies related to energy security and combating climate change, promoting the accelerated use of clean energy in all walks of life. The British energy consulting organization released a report in August this year, also believes that, thanks to the further reduction of costs and the accelerated layout of new capacity, wind and solar power generation is growing rapidly. The current global energy transition is from “total energy consumption growth” to “energy substitution” stage. In this phase, the increase of clean energy exceeds the growth of global energy demand, so that the consumption of fossil energy and carbon emissions decline.

The report projects that between 2023 and 2030, under current policy and market conditions, the increase in clean energy will exceed the increase in global electricity demand by 20%. By 2030, global coal use in power plants will be reduced by 10 percent and oil consumption by 50 percent. By then, for the first time, carbon dioxide emissions from energy systems will no longer be growing. “The global energy landscape is entering a phase quite different from the past, and increased investment in clean energy by all countries will have a huge impact on the future prospects of the energy sector and global action on climate change.” IEA Administrator Fatih Birol said.

Second, the global energy transition faces different challenges

In its report, the IEA also listed some of the challenges facing the global energy transition. “Global energy inequality still exists.” The IEA noted that about 750 million people worldwide (mainly in sub-Saharan Africa) currently lack access to electricity, and more than 2 billion people do not have access to clean cooking fuels. High financing costs and project risks limit the spread of clean energy technologies in these regions. In addition, regional conflicts and geopolitical tensions exacerbate the vulnerability of the global energy system, posing challenges to energy security and global action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The report notes that the current high incidence of extreme weather events globally and the increasing severity of extreme weather events, such as heat waves, droughts, floods and storms, pose serious challenges to the safe and reliable operation of energy systems. Based on current policies, global carbon dioxide emissions are expected to peak soon, and the temperature control goals of the Paris Agreement will be difficult to achieve. IEA called for a people-centered, resilient and flexible sustainable energy system and increased support for the energy transition in the least developed countries to gradually bridge the global energy divide.

IEA also said that although the global clean energy development momentum is rapid, but there are still financing costs are too high, the grid infrastructure is insufficient, the degree of integration of the system is weak and other aspects of the challenge. There is a need for countries to increase investment in the new energy sector, especially in power grids and energy storage. According to the report, “Advanced clean energy technologies such as solar photovoltaic, wind, and hydrogen will create huge potential for emission reductions in the future. Together, these technologies are responsible for nearly 3/4 of the carbon emission reductions by 2050. Therefore, improving grid infrastructure is key to realizing the global energy transition, especially by increasing investment in energy storage devices.”

China actively contributes to global green development

China upholds the concept of ecological civilization, vigorously promotes green, recycling and low-carbon development, and actively deepens international green cooperation. By the end of 2023, China's installed wind power and photovoltaic power generation capacity had increased by 10 times compared with 10 years ago, and the installed capacity of clean energy power generation accounted for 58.2% of the total, with the new clean energy power generation accounting for more than half of the incremental electricity consumption of society as a whole. China's investment in energy transformation in 2023 amounted to USD 676 billion, which is the largest investment in energy transformation in the world. China's wind power and photovoltaic products exported in 2023 will help other countries reduce carbon dioxide emissions by about 810 million tons.

Recently, Chinese companies have signed a number of overseas renewable energy project construction agreements, Chinese-made solar panels, wind power equipment and other equipment will provide a steady stream of green energy for the local community. In Bulgaria, China General Technology Group International Holdings Co., Ltd. signed a general contract to build a 229 MW peak photovoltaic power plant, which is expected to generate 320 million kilowatt-hours of electricity annually after completion, equivalent to saving 110,000 tons of standard coal. In Laos, China Yunnan Energy Investment Group Co., Ltd. signed a cooperative development agreement with the Lao government for the Ganmongsebangfei photovoltaic power generation project, with a planning capacity of 50.1 megawatts (MW), configured with an energy storage capacity of 10 megawatts (MWh), and with an average annual feed-in tariff of close to 100 million kilowatthours (kWh) after its commissioning. In Mauritania, China Energy Construction East China Institute signed a general contract for the Nouadhibou 1200 MW wind power project, after the completion of the project, the annual power generation capacity of about 4.134 billion kWh, equivalent to a reduction of about 4.12 million tons of carbon dioxide ......

China has established the world's largest carbon emissions trading market and cooperated with more than 100 countries and regions on green energy projects. China's new energy industry has enriched the global supply, pushed down the cost of the global energy transition, and made an important contribution to the global green transition and the fight against climate change.

China has become a global leader in clean energy,” said Jaime Bahar, senior analyst at the International Energy Agency. The rapid growth of China's clean energy capacity not only benefits China, but also the world.” Achim Steiner, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Administrator of the United Nations Development Program, believes that China is constantly accelerating the use of scientific and technological innovation, and many parts of the world will benefit from China's green development.