Clean Energy Grows, But Fossil Fuels Still Dominate

Renewables continued to scale in 2024, but not fast enough to displace fossil fuels as the world's dominant energy source. Wind and solar power saw a combined 16% increase last year, their fastest growth yet, according to the Energy Institute’s Statistical Review of World Energy. Yet total global energy demand also climbed—up 2% to a record 592 exajoules—pushing emissions from energy use to new highs.

This widening gap reflects a key challenge of the energy transition: clean sources are being added to the energy mix, but not replacing fossil fuels at scale. The result is a net increase in emissions, despite aggressive investments in renewables. The review shows that fossil fuel use, far from declining, remains resilient in the face of growing energy consumption, particularly in emerging economies.

Policy leaders now face the difficult balancing act of delivering energy security and economic growth while accelerating decarbonization. Without strategies to curb demand growth or rapidly substitute clean alternatives, the global transition risks stalling out before it achieves meaningful emissions cuts.

Regional Trends Highlight a Fragmented Energy Transition

China remained the largest driver of global energy trends in 2024, contributing 56% of all new renewable capacity. Solar deployment nearly doubled in just two years, marking the scale of what’s possible with coordinated investment and industrial policy. But the country’s overall consumption profile remains heavily tilted toward fossil fuels, which contributed significantly to the 1% rise in global CO₂-equivalent emissions.

There were contrasting signals elsewhere. In mature economies, especially OECD countries, oil demand held steady or declined, hinting at a potential decoupling of economic activity from fossil fuel consumption. By contrast, non-OECD nations saw oil use rise by 1%, as conventional fuels continue to underpin development needs.

India’s energy mix exemplifies this duality: despite progress in clean power, coal demand rose 4%—now matching the combined use across North America, Europe, Southern and Central America, and the CIS. Meanwhile, Europe faces mounting cost pressures that have slowed its energy transition, with interest rate hikes and supply chain constraints complicating deployment of new renewables.

These disparities point to an increasingly uneven energy future. The global goal to triple renewables by 2030, a key outcome from COP28, now appears more challenging against a backdrop of regional divergence, economic headwinds, and persistent reliance on legacy fuels.