Browse by: "2021"

Achieving Net Zero Electricity Sectors in G7 Members is a new report by the International Energy Agency that provides a roadmap to driving down CO2 emissions from electricity generation to net zero by 2035, building on analysis in Net Zero by 2050: A Roadmap for the Global Energy Sector.

The new report was requested by the United Kingdom, under its G7 Presidency, and followed the G7 leaders’ commitment in June 2021 to reach “an overwhelmingly decarbonised” power system in the 2030s and net zero emissions across their economies no later than 2050. It is designed to inform policy makers, industry, investors and citizens in advance of the COP26 Climate Change Conference in Glasgow that begins at the end of October 2021.

Starting from recent progress and the current state of play of electricity in the G7, the report analyses the steps needed to achieve net zero emissions from electricity, and considers the wider implications for energy security, employment and affordability. It identifies key milestones, emerging challenges and opportunities for innovation.

The report also underscores how G7 members can foster innovation through international collaboration and, as first movers, lower the cost of technologies for other countries while maintaining electricity security and placing people at the centre of clean energy transitions.

Ammonia is the starting point for all mineral nitrogen fertilisers, forming a bridge between the nitrogen in the air and the food we eat. Around 70% of ammonia is used to make fertilisers, with the remainder used for a wide range of industrial applications, such as plastics, explosives and synthetic fibres. Ammonia may also serve as a low-carbon energy vector in the future, but that application is not considered within the core analytical scope of this technology roadmap. Ammonia production accounts for around 2% of total final energy consumption and 1.3% of CO2 emissions from the energy system. An increasingly numerous and affluent global population will lead to growth in ammonia production, during a period in which governments around the world have declared that emissions from the energy system must head towards net zero.

This technology roadmap uses scenario analysis to explore three possible futures for ammonia production. In the Stated Policies Scenario the industry follows current trends, making incremental improvements but falling well short of a sustainable trajectory. In the Sustainable Development Scenario the sector adopts the technologies and policies required to put it on a pathway aligned with the goals of the Paris Agreement. The Net Zero Emissions by 2050 Scenario describes a trajectory for the ammonia industry that is compatible with reaching net zero emissions globally for the energy system by 2050. The roadmap concludes with a chapter outlining the necessary roles and actions of key stakeholders, namely governments, producers, and financial and research institutions, and establishes milestones and decision points.

In September 2020, President Xi Jinping announced that the People’s Republic of China will “aim to have CO2 emissions peak before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060”. Amid the growing wave of governments around the world setting targets for reaching net zero emissions, no pledge is as significant as China’s. The country is the world’s largest energy consumer and carbon emitter, accounting for one-third of global CO2 emissions. The pace of China’s emissions reductions will be an important factor in global efforts to limit global warming to 1.5 °C.

This report, An Energy Sector Roadmap to Carbon Neutrality in China, responds to the Chinese government’s invitation to the International Energy Agency to cooperate on long-term strategies by setting out pathways for reaching carbon neutrality in China’s energy sector. It shows that achieving carbon neutrality fits with China’s broader development goals, such as increasing prosperity and shifting towards innovation-driven growth. The first pathway in this Roadmap – the Announced Pledges Scenario – reflects the enhanced targets China announced in 2020. The report also explores the implications of a faster transition – the Accelerated Transition Scenario – and the socio-economic benefits it would bring beyond those associated with reducing the impact of climate change.

This Roadmap examines the technology challenges and opportunities that this new phase of the clean energy transition will bring for China’s development, with a focus on long-term needs. The technology innovations required in the Chinese context are a key in-depth focus area. The report concludes with a series of policy considerations to inform China’s energy debate.

Oil and gas continue to dominate Azerbaijan’s economy and provide most of its export and government revenue. While these resources have sharply raised the country’s living standards since the late 1990s and remain plentiful, the long-term outlook for this economic model is uncertain. Oil production is declining and major oil and gas importing countries have pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net-zero by mid-century, implying little demand three decades from now for oil or gas without carbon capture and storage.

This report assesses the energy sector and related economic challenges facing Azerbaijan. It proposes several ways to respond by increasing the efficiency and diversity of domestic energy supply and use. The overriding recommendation is a gradual transition to competitive markets with significant private sector participation and energy prices that reflect the cost of production. The withdrawal of subsidies should be accompanied by support measures for those most in need. Such a transition would attract new market entrants and new investments, helping to develop Azerbaijan’s significant solar and wind potential, and limiting greenhouse gas emissions.

These recommendations are in line with efforts already underway in Azerbaijan. Prompted by the oil price shock in 2014-15, the government has recently drafted proposals for electricity and gas market reforms, as well as laws on energy efficiency and renewable energy. The country’s first specific energy strategy is also nearing completion. The report encourages Azerbaijan to move swiftly to adopt all these proposals and implement them effectively to ensure secure and sustainable energy in the future.

Thanks to tremendous renewable energy and energy efficiency potential and a stable, dynamic economy, Indonesia has become a coveted destination for investors in the clean energy sector. Clean energy investment, however, remains far below the level needed to realise Indonesia’s ambitious clean energy and sustainable finance goals. Instead, investment in fossil fuels continues to dominate.

This first Clean Energy Finance and Investment Policy Review of Indonesia supports efforts to reverse these trends and achieve a clean energy transition. The report provides a comprehensive overview of the current policy framework, highlighting progress and identifying untapped opportunities for strengthening policy interventions that can help scale up clean energy finance and investment. It also provides a number of tailored recommendations for the Government of Indonesia and development partners. The Review was undertaken within the OECD Clean Energy Finance and Investment Mobilisation (CEFIM) Programme, which supports governments in emerging economies to unlock finance and investment in clean energy.

Viet Nam has become a leading regional market for renewable energy in a short space of time led by private sector investment facilitated by favourable support mechanisms. Maintaining market growth sustainably while integrating higher shares of variable generation will be a key challenge for Viet Nam’s policy makers over the next decade as the post-pandemic economic recovery builds momentum. Viet Nam's economy also remains highly energy intensive and energy efficiency improvement has the potential to unlock multiple economic benefits with further market interventions.

The Clean Energy Finance and Investment Policy Review of Viet Nam provides a comprehensive overview of the current policy framework, highlighting progress and identifying untapped opportunities for strengthening policy interventions that can help scale up clean energy finance and investment. It also provides a number of tailored recommendations for the Government of Viet Nam and development partners. The Review was undertaken within the OECD Clean Energy Finance and Investment Mobilisation (CEFIM) Programme, which supports governments in emerging economies to unlock finance and investment in clean energy.

Since the launch of the Clean Energy Transitions Programme (CETP) in late 2017, the IEA has significantly expanded its work to help accelerate energy transitions in major emerging economies. The CETP is playing a critical role in supporting clean energy transitions, putting sustainable development at the heart of economic recovery measures and further strengthening the IEA family.

The CETP Annual Report 2020 highlights the programme’s main activities, presenting major outcomes and areas for further work as well as planned activities for 2021. It also summarises IEA activities related to clean energy transitions at a global level, and introduces new and innovative analyses and resources produced throughout the year.

The report initially provides an overview of the CETP’s objectives, then presents highlights of activities and achievements for each priority country (Brazil, the People’s Republic of China. India, Indonesia, Mexico and South Africa), each priority region (Africa, Latin America and Southeast Asia), and globally.

Africa’s energy future matters to the world. That is why the International Energy Agency (IEA) is substantially expanding its engagement in African countries and with African regional partners. Since 2019, the IEA has initiated a programme of work in the form of enhanced institutional engagement, as well as an increase in technical activities in support of the energy strategies and objectives of African countries.

The IEA aims to support African countries with their transformative energy sector priorities and the implementation of clean energy transitions in the region by sharing expertise to enhance data, inform decision-making and guide policy implementation. This engagement takes place in coordination with local, regional and other international entities. The aim is to support a sustainable and an accelerated regional energy system transformation using a varied mix of technologies, in order to help achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG 7), promote increased energy security and affordability, and accelerate the development of clean energy systems across Africa. As the Covid-19 crisis continues to affect economies and energy systems across the world, the IEA aims to support African countries in their efforts to stimulate economic recovery from the crisis in which the energy sector transformation plays a catalytic role.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) completed this report, Cross-Border Electricity Trading for Tajikistan, as part of the EU4Energy programme, a five-year initiative funded by the European Union. The programme aims to support the development of evidence-based energy policy design and data capabilities within the countries of the Eastern Partnership and Central Asia.

The central purpose of this report is to guide policy making at all levels to facilitate effective cross-border integration of electricity markets to the benefit of Tajikistan as well as the region. This report can serve as a roadmap to support the Tajikistan’s National Development Strategy for 2030, which includes goals to export at least 10 TWh of its hydropower generation and to undertake reforms to improve the performance and sustainability of its power sector.

Cross-border electricity trading can bring many benefits in terms of optimising resource allocation among the countries involved. The availability of generation technologies, geography, socio-economic factors, and political agreements will determine the potential for cross-border electricity trading that countries could develop and subsequently the benefits that could be achieved. Therefore, the focus of this roadmap is to assess the feasibility and extent of electricity trade with Tajikistan’s neighbours and to lay out policy requirements for implementation. As the focus here is Tajikistan, the recommendations are based on the Tajik context.

Tackling methane emissions from fossil fuel operations represents one of the best near-term opportunities for limiting the worse effects of climate change because of its short-lived nature in the atmosphere and the large scope for cost-effective abatement, particularly in the oil and gas sector. This report explores practical measures that governments and companies can take to secure a 75% reduction in methane emissions from fossil fuel operations as envisioned in the IEA’s Net Zero by 2050 Roadmap.

Building on the estimates of emissions and abatement options in the IEA Methane Tracker and our Regulatory Roadmap and Toolkit, we quantify the potential impact of a range of measures, including policy and regulatory action, voluntary industry initiatives and improvements in transparency of emissions data. By identifying the different measures and approaches that can limit methane emissions, this analysis aims to provide insights and guidance for decision-makers in the lead-up to COP26 and beyond.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) regularly conducts in-depth peer reviews of the energy policies of its member countries. This process supports energy policy development and encourages the exchange of international best practices and experiences.

Fossil fuels, notably coal, still dominate the energy and electricity generation mix of the Czech Republic, but new climate targets at the European level will make coal less and less competitive. Therefore, the question is no longer if, but when, coal will exit the country’s energy mix. To boost investor confidence and ensure adequate electricity generation up to 2030 and beyond, the government will need to establish a firm pathway for phasing out coal. The phase-out of coal use and mining also poses important economic and social challenges, which the government is currently addressing by providing support for the economic restructuring and fair transformation of mining areas.

Although the Czech Republic has decoupled economic growth from energy consumption since 2009, the country’s energy intensity remains above the IEA average. This highlights the need to make energy efficiency the “first principle” of energy policy making.

This report includes a series of recommendations to support the Czech Republic’s efforts to tackle these challenges and to meet its energy and climate goals.

The OECD has been working on water policy reform in the countries of Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia for over 20 years. Three of the countries within the region, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine have signed Association Agreements with the European Union. These agreements provide a framework for deeper political ties and stronger economic links with the EU and include commitments for approximation towards EU legislation including the Water Framework Directive.

Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine have ambitious long-term strategic plans for their water sectors, which include fulfilment of requirements under the Association Agreements and international commitments including the Sustainable Development Goals. The water policy outlooks baseline the country policy framework and current performance and then define the long-term vision and aspirations to 2030. The outlooks aim to demonstrate the likelihood of the current policy framework to achieve the long-term objectives and desired future state of the water sector, and include identification of opportunities for improving policy coherence and policies that have the opportunity to improve the likelihood of success.