The International Energy Agency (IEA) highlighted the vulnerabilities in the global energy system, exacerbated by regional conflicts and geopolitical tensions, in its World Energy Outlook 2024. The IEA underscored the need for stronger policies and investments to hasten the energy transition. Despite these challenges, the agency expects a relatively abundant supply of various fuels and technologies in the coming years, including oil, LNG, solar PV, and batteries.
IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol noted that an oversupply of oil and natural gas in the latter half of this decade could reduce price pressures and provide breathing room for clean energy investments. Low-emission sources are expected to account for more than half of global electricity generation before 2030, with coal, oil, and gas demand peaking by the decade’s end.
The report emphasized that the world is entering the “Age of Electricity,” with rapid growth in global power demand, especially in China, where solar power generation could surpass the total electricity demand of the US by the early 2030s. However, significant investment in energy systems, particularly power grids and storage, is necessary to support this transition.
Despite progress in clean energy transitions, the report warned that current policies would result in a global temperature rise of 2.4°C by the end of the century, far above the Paris Agreement target of 1.5°C. It also highlighted the increasing energy security risks posed by extreme weather events, such as heatwaves, droughts, and storms, which are already disrupting energy systems.