Islamabad Supercharging the Clean Energy Age, in New York today The headlines are dominated by a world in trouble. By conflict and climate chaos. By rising human suffering. By growing geopolitical divides. But amidst the turmoil, another story is being written. And its implications will be profound.
According to EMM, throughout history, energy has shaped the destiny of humankind – from mastering fire to harnessing steam to splitting the atom. Now, we are on the cusp of a new era. Fossil fuels are running out of road. The sun is rising on a clean energy age. Today, we are releasing a special report with the support of UN agencies and partners – the International Energy Agency, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), International Renewable Energy Agency, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the World Bank.
The report shows how far we have come in the decade since the Paris Agreement sparked a clean energy revolution. And it highlights the vast benefits – and actions needed – to accelerate a just transition globally. Renewables already nearly match fossil fuels in global installed power capacity. And that’s just the beginning. Last year, almost all the new power capacity built came from renewables. And every continent on Earth added more renewables capacity than fossil fuels. The clean energy future is no longer a promise. It’s a fact. No government. No industry. No special interest can stop it.
Of course, the fossil fuel lobby of some fossil fuel companies will try – and we know the lengths to which they will go. But I have never been more confident that they will fail – because we have passed the point of no return. For three powerful reasons. First, market economics. For decades, emissions and economic growth rose together. No more. In many advanced economies, emissions have peaked, but growth continues.
In 2023 alone, clean energy sectors drove 10 per cent of global gross domestic product (GDP) growth. In India, 5 per cent. The United States, 6 per cent. China – a leader in the energy transition – 20 per cent. And in the European Union, nearly 33 per cent. And clean energy sector jobs now outnumber fossil fuel jobs – employing almost 35 million people worldwide. Even Texas – the heart of the American fossil fuel industry – now leads the United States in renewables. Why? Because it makes economic sense.
And yet fossil fuels still enjoy a 9-to-1 advantage in consumption subsidies globally – a clear market distortion. Add to that the unaccounted costs of climate damages on people and planet – and the distortion is even greater. Countries that cling to fossil fuels are not protecting their economies – they are sabotaging them. Driving up costs. Undermining competitiveness. Locking in stranded assets. And missing the greatest economic opportunity of the twenty-first century.
Second – renewables are here to stay because they are the foundation of energy security and sovereignty. Let’s be clear: The greatest threat to energy security today is in fossil fuels. They leave economies and people at the mercy of price shocks, supply disruptions and geopolitical turmoil. Just look at Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. A war in Europe led to a global energy crisis. Oil and gas prices soared. Electricity and food bills followed. In 2022 average households around the world saw energy costs jump 20 per cent.
Modern and competitive economies need stable, affordable energy. Renewables offer both. There are no price spikes for sunlight. No embargoes on wind. Renewables can put power – literally and figuratively – in the hands of people and governments. And almost every nation has enough sun, wind, or water to become energy self-sufficient. Renewables mean real energy security. Real energy sovereignty. And real freedom from fossil-fuel volatility.
The third and final reason why there is no going back on renewables: Easy access. You can’t build a coal plant in someone’s backyard. But you can deliver solar panels to the most remote village on Earth. Solar and wind can be deployed faster, cheaper and more flexibly than fossil fuels ever could. And while nuclear will be part of the global energy mix, it can never fill the access gaps.
All of this is a game changer for the hundreds of millions of people still living without electricity – most of them in Africa, a continent bursting with renewable potential. By 2040, Africa could generate 10 times more electricity than it needs – entirely from renewables. We are already seeing small-scale and off-grid renewable technologies lighting homes, and powering schools and businesses in remote areas. And in places like Pakistan for example, people power is fuelling a solar surge – consumers are driving the clean energy boom.
The energy transition is unstoppable. But the transition is not yet fast enough or fair enough. OECD countries and China account for 80 per cent of renewable power capacity installed worldwide. Brazil and India make up nearly 10 per cent. Africa – just 1.5 per cent. Meanwhile, the climate crisis is laying waste to lives and livelihoods. Climate disasters in small island States have wiped out over 100 per cent of GDP. In the United States, they are pushing insurance premiums through the roof.
And the 1.5-degree limit is in unprecedented peril. To keep it within reach, we must drastically speed up the reduction of emissions – and the reach of the clean energy transition. With manufacturing capacity racing, prices plummeting, and COP30 [Thirtieth Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change] fast approaching… This is our moment of opportunity. We must seize it. We can do so by taking action in six opportunity areas.
First – by using new national climate plans to go all-out on the energy transition. Too often, governments send mixed messages: Bold renewable targets on one day. New fossil fuel subsidies and expansions the next. The next national climate plans, or NDCs, are due in a matter of months. They must bring clarity and certainty. Group of Twenty (G20) countries must lead. They produce 80 per cent of global emissions. The principle of common but differentiated responsibilities must apply but every country must do more. Ahead of COP30 in Brazil this November, they must submit new plans.