World fossil fuel demand to peak by 2030: IEA

The global demand for fossil fuels is expected to peak by 2030, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). 

The IEA announced in a new report that there will be “a considerably different global energy system” by 2030 due to current shifts in the energy industry. The report estimates that by the end of the decade, there could be 10 times as many electric cars on the road globally, renewables’ share of the global electricity mix could jump up to 50 percent and electric heating systems could outsell fossil fuel boilers. 

“The transition to clean energy is happening worldwide and it’s unstoppable. It’s not a question of ‘if’, it’s just a matter of ‘how soon’ – and the sooner the better for all of us,” IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said in a statement.

“Governments, companies and investors need to get behind clean energy transitions rather than hindering them. There are immense benefits on offer, including new industrial opportunities and jobs, greater energy security, cleaner air, universal energy access and a safer climate for everyone,” he continued. 

The report is based on the current polices in place set by countries throughout the globe. The IEA noted that if countries “deliver on their national energy and climate pledges on time and in full, clean energy progress would move even faster.”

The agency also warned that the demand for fossil fuels still remains too high at the moment to meet the Paris climate agreement’s goals of limiting the rise in average global temperatures to 1.5 degrees Celsius. The U.S officially rejoined the Paris Agreement in 2021 after former President Trump withdrew from the deal.

Under the Paris deal, the world’s countries agreed to try to limit the planet’s warming to less than 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, with the further goal of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees.

The report also noted that the ongoing violence in the Middle East could affect energy policies in the coming years. It said that it could create “further uncertainty for an unsettled global economy that is feeling the effects of stubborn inflation and high borrowing costs.”