Coal Behind Rise, CO2 Emissions Increases In 2023; Throttled By Clean Energy: IEA

Coal Behind Rise, CO2 Emissions Increases In 2023; Throttled By Clean Energy: IEA. Photo: Pexels

Total energy-related CO₂ emissions increased by 1.1% in 2023. Far from falling rapidly – as is required to meet the global climate goals set out in the Paris Agreement – CO₂ emissions reached a new record high of 37.4 Gt in 2023, according to the latest report by the International Energy Agency (IEA).

The 1.1% increase in emissions in 2023 represented an increase of around 410 million tonnes (Mt CO₂). The percentage growth of emissions was substantially slower than global GDP growth, which was around 3% in 2023. Last year therefore continued the recent trend of CO₂ growing more slowly than global economic activity. Over the ten years ending with 2023, global CO₂ emissions have grown by slightly more than 0.5% per year, stated the IEA report.

The report by IEA also delved into the impact of renewable energy in reining in the emissions stating that clean energy is at the heart of the witnessed slowdown in emissions. Global capacity additions of wind and solar PV reached a record almost 540 GW in 2023, up 75% on the level of 2022. Global sales of electric cars climbed to around 14 million, an increase of 35% on the level of 2022. Clean energy is having a significant impact on the trajectory of global CO₂ emissions, stated the IEA analysis.

IEA also said that on the back of COVID-19 stimulus packages, there has been a significant acceleration in clean energy deployment since 2019. Between 2019 and 2023, total energy-related emissions increased around 900 Mt.

According to the report, coal has contributed by far the most to the increase of global CO₂ emissions in the post-pandemic era. Global emissions from energy combustion have increased by around 850 Mt since 2019; those from coal have grown by 900 Mt, gas emissions have increased moderately, and oil emissions are still slightly below their 2019 level.

The IEA report in its analysis also found that coal accounted for around 70% of the increase in global emissions from energy combustion in 2023 (+270 Mt). China and India saw substantial increases in emissions from coal combustion, only partially offset by declines in advanced economies. At the sector level, transport experienced the most pronounced growth in emissions, surging by nearly 240 Mt globally. The power sector contributed the second largest increase and shows the highest level of regional disparity, as emissions in advanced economies collapsed while those in emerging markets and developing economies soared. Industrial emissions saw a slight uptick, as the combination of moderately weaker industrial output, efficiency gains, and fuel switching in advanced economies was insufficient to counterbalance the emissions increase from industrial development in emerging markets and developing economies.