International Energy Agency sees global emissions peaking in 2025
The Hindu
Natural gas hits a plateau in the end of the decade, instead of the previous forecast of a steady rise.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) said on October 26, 2022 it believes global emissions will peak in 2025 as surging energy prices due the Russian invasion of Ukraine propel investment in renewables.
Only last year the IEA said there was “no clear peak in sight” in energy emissions, but the new higher investment in wind and solar is setting up demand for all fossil fuels to peak or plateau, leading to a drop in emissions.
“The global energy crisis triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is causing profound and long-lasting changes that have the potential to hasten the transition to a more sustainable and secure energy system,” the IEA said as it released its latest annual World Energy Outlook report.
Based on the latest measures and policies announced by governments in the face of soaring energy prices, the IEA forecasts global clean energy investment to rise by more than 50 percent from today's levels to $2 trillion per year by 2030.
Those measures will propel sustained gains in renewables and nuclear power.
"As a result, a high point for global emissions is reached in 2025," the IEA said.
Global CO2 emissions are then set to fall back slowly from a high point of 37 billion tonnes per year to 32 billion tonnes by 2050, it added.