Global energy demand surges 2.2% in 2024: IEA

Global energy demand grew at a faster-than-usual pace in 2024, driven by surging electricity consumption and record heatwaves, according to the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) latest Global Energy Review.

Global energy demand rose 2.2 per cent in 2024, led by surging electricity consumption.
Renewables and nuclear met most demand growth, while oil’s share fell below 30 per cent due to rising EV sales.
CO2 emissions climbed 0.8 per cent, but clean energy adoption slowed the rise.
Advanced economies’ emissions dropped 1.1 per cent, highlighting a decoupling of emissions from economic growth.

The new report reveals that global energy demand increased by 2.2 per cent last year, outpacing the average annual rise of 1.3 per cent seen over the past decade. While this growth remained below global GDP growth of 3.2 per cent, it marked a significant acceleration from recent years, with emerging and developing economies responsible for over 80 per cent of the overall increase.

A key driver was the power sector, where global electricity consumption soared by 4.3 per cent – nearly double the average annual growth rate over the past ten years. This translated to an increase of almost 1,100 terawatt-hours, fuelled by rising industrial activity, increased cooling needs amid record global temperatures, the electrification of transport, and the rapid expansion of data centres and artificial intelligence infrastructure, IEA said in a release.

“What is certain is that electricity use is growing rapidly, pulling overall energy demand along with it to such an extent that it is enough to reverse years of declining energy consumption in advanced economies,” said IEA executive director Fatih Birol.

Low-emissions energy sources covered most of this rising demand. Renewable energy capacity additions hit a record 700 gigawatts, the 22nd consecutive year of growth, while nuclear power also saw one of its strongest years in decades. In total, renewables and nuclear together accounted for 80 per cent of the growth in electricity generation, making up 40 per cent of global electricity output for the first time.

Natural gas played a pivotal supporting role, with gas-fired power generation rising steadily. Overall natural gas demand climbed by 115 billion cubic metres – a 2.7 per cent increase, significantly above the 10-year average of 75 bcm annually.

By contrast, oil demand grew more modestly by 0.8 per cent. Its share in the global energy mix dipped below 30 per cent for the first time since it peaked at 46 per cent in the 1970s. The surge in electric vehicle adoption – with EVs making up one in five new car sales and growing by over 25 per cent in 2024 – helped dampen oil demand, particularly in the road transport sector.

“The result is that demand for all major fuels and energy technologies increased in 2024, with renewables covering the largest share of the growth, followed by natural gas. And the strong expansion of solar, wind, nuclear power and EVs is increasingly loosening the links between economic growth and emissions,” Birol explained.

Coal demand edged up by 1 per cent, half the pace of growth seen in 2023. Notably, extreme heat in China and India, which significantly boosted cooling-related electricity use, accounted for over 90 per cent of the increase in global coal consumption, underscoring the growing impact of climate-induced weather patterns on energy trends.

Despite the rise in overall energy demand, the report highlights progress in decoupling emissions from economic growth. Global energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions rose by 0.8 per cent to 37.8 billion tonnes – significantly restrained compared to what might have been expected given the scale of demand growth.

According to the IEA, clean energy technologies introduced since 2019 – including solar PV, wind, nuclear, electric vehicles and heat pumps – are now preventing 2.6 billion tonnes of CO2 emissions annually, or seven per cent of global emissions.

Advanced economies saw their CO2 emissions fall by 1.1 per cent to 10.9 billion tonnes – a level last recorded 50 years ago – even though their combined GDP is now three times higher. In contrast, most emissions growth in 2024 came from emerging and developing economies, excluding China. Although China’s emissions growth slowed, its per-capita emissions are now 16 per cent higher than those in advanced economies and nearly double the global average.

“From slowing global oil demand growth and rising deployment of electric cars to the rapidly expanding role of electricity and the increasing decoupling of emissions from economic growth, many of the key trends the IEA has identified ahead of the curve are showing up clearly in the data for 2024,” Dr Birol said.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (HU)