Energy transition holds key to tackle global energy and climate crisis: IRENA

World Energy Transitions Outlook outlines priority actions till 2030 to keep 1.5°C alive; calls on governments to fast-track energy transition for more energy security, resilience and affordable energy for all.

Towards the 2050 goal

• IRENA’s 1.5°C pathway positions electrification and efficiency as key drivers of the energy transition, enabled by renewables, hydrogen, and sustainable biomass.
• This pathway, which requires a massive change in how societies produce and consume energy, would result in a cut of nearly 37 gigatonnes of annual CO2 emissions by 2050.
• These reductions can be achieved through

1. 1. significant increases in generation and direct uses of renewables-based electricity;
   2. substantial improvements in energy efficiency;
   3. the electrification of end-use sectors (e.g. electric vehicles and heat pumps);
   4. clean hydrogen and its derivatives;
   5. bioenergy coupled with carbon capture and storage; and
   6. last-mile use of carbon capture and storage

Key Highlights of the World Energy Transitions Outlook 2022:

• The recent pledges made by countries at the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow and in their updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) are welcome but they are still not ambitious enough to achieve climate goals.
  • There is an estimated gap of 20 Gt between the updated NDCs and other pledges made around COP26 (e.g. related to net zero emissions and cutting methane), and the efforts required to realise the 1.5°C climate goal by 2050.
• The Outlook sees investment needs of $5.7 trillion per year until 2030 including the imperative to redirect $0.7 trillion annually away from fossil fuels to avoid stranded assets.
  • But investing in the transition will bring concrete socioeconomic and welfare benefits, adding 85 million jobs worldwide in renewables and other transition-related technologies between today and 2030.
• Renewables will have to scale-up massively across all sectors from 14 per cent of total energy today to around 40 per cent in 2030.
• Global annual additions of renewable power will triple by 2030 as recommended by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
  • At the same time, coal power will have to resolutely be replaced, fossil fuel assets phased out and infrastructure upgraded.
• The Outlook sees electrification and efficiency as key drivers of the energy transition, enabled by renewables, hydrogen, and sustainable biomass.
• End-use decarbonisation will take centre-stage with many solutions available through electrification, green hydrogen, and the direct use of renewables.