Browse by: "2022"

This policy makers manual is prepared under the framework of the Global Environment Facility programme aimed at supporting low- and middle-income economies in their transition to electric mobility. It aims to serve as a guide for policy makers to effectively integrate electric vehicle charging into the grid, thereby supporting road transport electrification and decarbonisation.

The key steps can be summarised as preparing institutions for the shift to electric mobility, assessing the impacts on the grid, deploying measures for grid integration and improving power system planning. Each of these steps is informed by insights from various studies and inputs from international stakeholders, with recommendations based on best practices from around the world.

Coal sits in the centre of climate and energy discussions because it is the largest energy source globally for electricity generation and for the production of iron and steel and of cement, as well as the largest single source of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. The current energy crisis has forced some countries to increase their reliance on coal in spite of climate and energy targets.

Coal 2022 offers a thorough analysis of recent trends in coal demand, supply, trade, costs and prices against a backdrop of rising concern about energy security and geopolitical tensions. It also provides forecasts to 2025 for demand, supply and trade – by region and by coal grade. The report contains a deep analysis of China, whose influence on the coal market is unparalleled by any other country and in any other fuel.

The IEA’s Coal Market Report has been published every December since 2011, becoming the global benchmark for coal demand, supply and trade forecasts. It is essential reading for anyone with an interest in climate and energy.

European and global natural gas markets are not yet out of the danger created by Russia’s cuts to pipeline deliveries of gas. If gas exports from Russia drop to zero and China’s LNG imports rebound to 2021 levels, there is a risk of a shortfall gas supplies in 2023. Measures already taken by EU governments on energy efficiency, renewables and heat pumps should help reduce the size of this potential natural gas supply-demand gap in 2023. A recovery in nuclear and hydropower output from their decade-low levels in 2022 should also help narrow the gap. Despite all of this, the EU’s potential gas supply-demand gap could reach 27 billion cubic metres in 2023.

This new report provides the IEA’s latest analysis of the extent of the EU's potential gas supply-demand gap in 2023 and sets out the practical actions that can close that gap while avoiding excessive strains for European consumers and for international markets. The analysis includes real-world examples of measures that could be implemented and quantifies their impacts. The measures offer a pathway to a more secure and balanced EU gas market in 2023 and are consistent with the EU’s climate goals.

Carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) technologies are an important solution for the decarbonisation of the global energy system as it proceeds down the path to net zero emissions. CCUS can contribute to the decarbonisation of the industrial and power generation sectors, and can also unlock technology-based carbon dioxide (CO2) removal. However, its successful deployment hinges on the availability of CO2 storage. For widespread CCUS deployment to occur, CO2 storage infrastructure needs to develop at the same speed or faster than CO2 capture facilities.

CO2 has been injected into the Earth’s subsurface since the 1970s and dedicated CO2 storage (where CO2 is injected for the purpose of its storage and not for CO2-based enhanced oil recovery) has been occurring since 1996. There are seven commercial-scale dedicated CO2 storage sites today, with more than 100 others in development. Lessons learned from these sites, along with research, pilot and demonstration projects, contribute to our understanding of CO2 storage resources, their assessment and their development into CO2 storage sites.This IEA CCUS Handbook is an aid for energy sector stakeholders on CO2 storage resources and their development. It provides an overview of geological storage, its benefits, risks and socio economic considerations. The handbook is supported by an extensive glossary of CO2 storage-related terminology found at the end of this report .

Renewables 2022 is the IEA’s primary analysis on the sector, based on current policies and market developments. It forecasts the deployment of renewable energy technologies in electricity, transport and heat to 2027 while also exploring key challenges to the industry and identifying barriers to faster growth.

The current global energy crisis brings both new opportunities and new challenges for renewable energy. Renewables 2022 provides analysis on the new policies introduced in response to the energy crisis. This year’s report frames current policy and market dynamics while placing the recent rise in energy prices and energy security challenges in context.

In addition to its detailed market analysis and forecasts, Renewables 2022 also examines key developments and trends for the sector, including the more ambitious renewable energy targets recently proposed by the European Union; the issue of windfall profits; the diversification of solar PV manufacturing; renewable capacity for hydrogen production; and a possible feedstock crunch in the biofuels industry and viable ways to avoid it.

This report reviews evidence that overshooting 1.5°C may push the earth over several tipping points, leading to irreversible and severe changes in the climate system. If triggered, tipping point impacts will rapidly cascade through socio-economic and ecological systems, leading to severe effects on human and natural systems and imposing important challenges for human adaptation. Of particular concern are the likely collapse of the West Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets and the abrupt melting of permafrost grounds in the Arctic, which would result in additional sea-level rise and greenhouse gas releases, leading to more warming.

Based on the most recent science and consultations with renowned experts, Climate Tipping Points: Insights for Effective Policy Action argues that it is no longer appropriate to consider the risk of crossing tipping points as low-probability. Overshooting 1.5°C may likely lead to irreversible and severe impacts, which must be avoided, heightening the urgency to drastically reduce emissions within this decade. The report calls for a shift in how tipping points are treated in climate policy today and provides recommendations on how climate risk management strategies can better reflect the risks of tipping points in the areas of mitigation, adaptation and technological innovation.

Realising the contribution of nuclear energy to achieving net zero carbon emission in 2050 will require raising significant amounts of capital at competitive rates. On the basis of work under the aegis of the Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) – International Framework for Nuclear Energy Cooperation (IFNEC) Initiative on Nuclear Financing, this report explores a new framework for analysing the cost of capital for nuclear new build projects. Its key insight is that capital costs can be substantially lowered if the different risks pertaining to such projects such as construction risk, price risk or political risk are properly understood, optimally managed and fairly allocated. In a carbon-constrained world, the true capital costs of nuclear energy and other low-carbon generators will also be lower than customarily assumed due to their ability to offset systemic financial risk. The findings of this report apply equally to private and public investments. Governments nevertheless have important roles to play in ensuring credible net zero commitments, implementing frameworks for optimal risk management and by becoming involved as project participants, in cases where they judge that private actors do not realise the full value of a nuclear power project.

This report is the first in the collection New perspectives on financing nuclear new build, highlighting complementary aspects of financing nuclear new build. Other volumes in the series address the financing frameworks and risk allocation strategies proposed or adopted for recent or ongoing nuclear new build projects, environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria and the electricity market design, project management and incentive structures necessary for nuclear new build projects to succeed.

Energy Efficiency 2022 is the IEA’s primary annual analysis on global developments in energy efficiency markets and policy. It explores recent trends in energy intensity, demand and efficiency-related investment, innovation, policy and technology while also discussing key questions facing policy makers. This year record-high consumer energy bills and securing reliable access to supply are urgent political and economic imperatives for almost all governments. In response to the energy crisis countries are prioritising energy efficiency action due to its ability to simultaneously meet affordability, supply security and climate goals.

While efficiency investment has recently been increasing to reach new record levels, the pace of global energy intensity improvements had noticeably slowed in the second half of the last decade and virtually stalled during the first two years of Covid-19. With efforts to better manage energy consumption as a result of the crisis increasing the rate of improvement once more, the question as to whether 2022 will see a sustained efficiency turning point, and what more can be done, are key themes of this year’s report.

The number of corporations announcing clean electricity pledges has increased substantially in recent years, with many companies setting specific goals to meet some or all of their electricity demand with clean supply. These goals can support new capacity in clean generation, helping to boost overall shares in power systems. Increasingly, clean electricity goals can be specified in different ways; this can have implications for the clean technologies procured, the amount and location of procurement, and the resulting emissions reduction. In some regions, corporates have a range of options to choose from when purchasing clean electricity; in other regions, legal and regulatory barriers still constrain engagement in corporate procurement.

This report examines the options available and the ways in which they contribute to decarbonisation and, ultimately, net zero electricity goals. Using the IEA’s regional power system models for India and Indonesia, the report applies quantitative analysis to examine the implications of different procurement strategies for emissions reduction, procurement costs and technology deployment. A key finding is that when companies set more granular goals – such as matching their electricity demand hourly (rather than annually as has been the dominant practice) – it can stimulate deployment of the wider portfolio of flexible technologies needed for net zero transitions in the power sector.

The report aims to guide corporates in choosing impactful ways to procure clean electricity. It also highlights the roles of policy makers, regulators, system operators and network owners and operators in increasing the availability and impact of corporate procurement options. The final chapter offers targeted recommendations for different stakeholder groups.

Hydrogen and carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS) are set to play important and complementary roles in meeting People’s Republic of China’s (hereafter, “China”) pledge to peak carbon dioxide emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060. Hydrogen could contribute to China’s energy system decarbonisation strategy, such as through the use as a fuel and feedstock in industrial processes; in fuel cell electric transport, and for the production of synthetic hydrocarbon fuels for shipping and aviation. The analysis of scenarios in this report suggests that while hydrogen from renewable power electrolysis could meet the majority of hydrogen demand by 2060, equipping existing hydrogen production facilities with CCUS could be a complementary strategy to reduce emissions and scale-up low-emission hydrogen supply.

This report was produced in collaboration with the Administrative Centre for China’s Agenda 21 (ACCA21). It explores today’s hydrogen and CCUS status in China, and the potential evolution of hydrogen demand in various sectors of the Chinese economy through 2060, in light of scenarios developed independently by the IEA and the China Hydrogen Alliance. The report also provides a comparative assessment of the economic performance and life cycle emissions of different hydrogen production routes. Finally, the report discusses potential synergies and regional opportunities in deploying CCUS and hydrogen, and identifies financing mechanisms and supporting policies required to enable the deployment of hydrogen production with CCUS in China.

Growing climate change is putting global energy security at risk, threatening the reliable supply of fuels and resources. Climate change directly affects every aspect of the energy system, from the extraction, processing and transport of fuels and minerals, to the potential, efficiency and reliability of power generation, to the physical resilience of energy infrastructure, as well as impacting energy demand patterns. According to most scenarios, climate change disruptions are likely to increase in magnitude in the coming decades. A comprehensive understanding of climate effects on energy supply and demand is crucial to strengthening the resilience of energy systems.

This report provides a comprehensive overview of the climate impacts and hazards facing energy systems, with projections up to the end of the 21st century. It also presents effective measures for energy suppliers, consumers and public authorities to enhance climate resilience, with cost-benefit analysis proving that investments in climate resilience bring long-term benefits.

Amid the ongoing global energy crisis, Never Too Early to Prepare for Next Winter: Europe’s Gas Balance for 2023-2024 examines the latest developments in European natural gas and electricity markets, and in global LNG markets – assessing their implications for Europe’s gas balance in 2023 and 2024.

Based on detailed analysis of global data and market trends, this new IEA report cautions that the process of filling European gas storage sites in 2022 benefitted from key factors – including Russian pipeline flows during the summer and lower LNG imports by China – that may well not be repeated in 2023. This raises the risk of a supply-demand gap of as much as 30 billion cubic metres (bcm) during the key summer period for refilling gas storage in 2023.