Economy Renewable energy likely to overtake coal in electricity generation soon

More electricity could be generated from renewable energy than from coal as early as next year, the International Energy Agency predicts. However, CO2 emissions will only fall slightly.

According to a study by the International Energy Agency (IEA), the share of renewable energies in global electricity generation will exceed the amount of energy generated from coal for the first time in 2025. A rapid increase in electricity generation from renewable energies and an increase in their share of the global electricity supply from 30 percent in 2023 to 35 percent in 2025 is expected, according to the IEA in Paris.

Rising demand for electricity

According to the report, global demand for electricity will also increase by around four percent this year compared to 2.5 percent in 2023. The strong increase in consumption will continue in 2025 with further growth of around four percent.

It is expected that photovoltaics alone will cover around half of the increase in global electricity demand this year and next - with solar and wind energy together even accounting for three quarters of the growth, the IEA predicted.

The energy agency cites strong economic activity in key economies such as India, China and the USA as reasons for the increase in electricity consumption. In the EU, on the other hand, demand for electricity is expected to grow at a slower rate of 1.7 percent. Heatwaves with the increased use of air conditioning systems are also driving up electricity consumption, as is the expanding data center sector, which requires electricity for cooling.

Forecast: coal-fired power generation to continue

Despite the strong increase in renewable energies, global electricity generation from coal is unlikely to fall, at least this year, due to the strong growth in demand, particularly in China and India, according to the IEA. As a result, carbon dioxide emissions from the global power sector stagnated, with a slight increase in 2024, followed by a decline in 2025.

"Growth in global electricity demand this year and next will be among the fastest in the past two decades, highlighting the growing role of electricity in our economies as well as the impact of severe heatwaves," said IEA Director of Energy Markets and Security, Keisuke Sadamori. "It is encouraging to see that the share of clean energy in the electricity mix continues to rise, but this needs to happen much faster to meet international energy and climate targets."

SDA