IEA Publications on 'Transport'

Press Release
Table of Contents
Summary

Type: Studies
Subject: Climate Change ; CO2 Emissions ; Oil ; Technology - RD ; Transport

Transport accounts for one-quarter of global energy use and energy-related CO2 emissions. To achieve the necessary deep cuts in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, transport must play a significant role.

However, without strong global action, car ownership worldwide is set to triple to over two billion by 2050. Trucking activity will double and air travel could increase four-fold. These trends will lead to a doubling of transport energy use, with an even higher growth rate in CO2 emissions as the planet shifts toward high-CO2 synthetic fuels. How can we enable mobility without accelerating climate change?

Transport, Energy and CO2: Moving Toward Sustainability provides answers to this question. It finds that if we change the way we travel, adopt technologies to improve vehicle efficiency and shift to low-CO2 fuels, we can move onto a different pathway where transport CO2 emissions by 2050 are far below current levels, at costs that are lower than many assume. The report discusses the prospects for shifting more travel to the most efficient modes and reducing travel growth rates, improving vehicle fuel efficiency by up to 50% using cost-effective, incremental technologies, and moving toward electricity, hydrogen, and advanced biofuels to achieve a more secure and sustainable transport future. If governments implement strong policies to achieve this scenario, transport can play its role and dramatically reduce CO2 emissions by 2050.

This publication is one of three new IEA end-use studies, together with industry and buildings, which look at the role of technologies and policies in transforming the way energy is used in these sectors.

Press Release
Table of Contents
Summary

Type: Studies
Subject: Electricity ; Environment ; Renewable Energy ; Transport

Since 1990, Chile has been the fastest growing economy in Latin America thanks to sound economic management and integration into the global economy. Chile can also be proud of its energy policy achievements. The pioneering privatisation and liberalisation of its electricity sector in the 1980s was the foundation for a competitive energy sector, which has sustained the rapid growth of the Chilean economy over the past two decades.

Nonetheless, Chile faces the continuing challenge of finding additional energy supplies to fuel economic growth. Chile has limited fossil energy resources and depends on imports to meet three-quarters of its energy needs. The country’s electricity sector has faced three periods of significant stress over the past decade. The last episode took place in 2007/2008, when the loss of natural gas imports from Argentina was further exacerbated by a drought in the central system, where hydropower normally accounts for over half of electricity generation.

Drawing on the experience of IEA member countries, the Review assesses Chile’s major energy challenges and provides recommendations. Six main themes emerge: the successful liberalisation of the power sector in the 1980s; the essential role played by the state in ensuring energy security; the re-formulation of Chile’s long-term energy policy; the proposed reorganisation of the institutional framework; greater independence for the system operators; and the need for a clear framework of regulation so that long-term investment decisions integrate social and environmental costs.

The Chile Energy Policy Review 2009 is essential reading for all who are interested in Chilean energy issues and in learning about the important role sound energy policy can play in developing a nation’s economic and social welfare.