According to the 6th “Global Electricity Review” report prepared by the international energy think tank Ember, electricity generation from renewable energy sources worldwide increased by 858 terawatt-hours last year to a record high. This marks a 49% increase compared to 2022.
Solar Energy Continues Its Rise
In 2024, electricity generation from solar energy increased by 29% compared to the previous year, reaching 474 terawatt-hours. With this development, the sun became the largest contributor to clean energy production for the third consecutive year. The share of solar in global electricity generation increased to 6.9%.
While more than half of this growth took place in China, the increase in the country's clean energy production met 81% of the increase in electricity demand. In India, commissioned electricity generation capacity doubled compared to 2023.
Wind and Hydro Resources in Balance
While the share of wind energy in global electricity generation increased to 8.1%, hydroelectric resources remained the largest clean energy source with 14.3%. The share of nuclear energy was 9%, while other renewable energy sources accounted for 2.6% of total generation.
Electricity Demand Increased by Hot Weather and Artificial Intelligence
Electricity generation from fossil fuels increased by 1.4% in 2024, mainly due to global heat waves and increased use of air conditioners. If these extreme weather conditions had not occurred, fossil-based generation would have increased by only 0.2%.
Electricity demand in 2024 also increased by 0.7%, driven by artificial intelligence, data centers, electric vehicles and heat pumps. This is double the rate of the last five years.
Is the Fossil Era Behind Us?
According to the report, clean energy production will be sufficient to meet the increase in electricity demand in the coming years and the role of fossil fuels in electricity generation will permanently decrease. By 2030, growth in clean energy generation will offset electricity demand growth of 4.1%.
Production changes in major emerging economies such as China and India are expected to determine the global energy outlook.
“Solar is the Engine of Transformation”
Ember Managing Director Phil MacDonald noted in his assessment that solar energy has become the ‘engine’ of the global energy transformation and added, “As the fastest growing and largest energy source, solar is critical to meeting the growing demand for electricity.”
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