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Heating
…in China, the world’s largest heat pump market, sales remained stable.
Heat pumps are a proven way to provide secure and sustainable heating
Heat pumps, powered by low-emissions electricity, are the central technology in the global transition to secure and sustainable heating. The Future of Heat Pumps, a special report in the IEA’s World Energy Outlook series, provides an outlook for heat pumps, identifying key opportunities to accelerate their deployment. It also highlights the major barriers and policy solutions, and explores the implications of an accelerated uptake of heat pumps for energy security, consumers’ energy bills, employment…
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Heat Pumps
…the central technology in the global transition to secure and sustainable heating. The Future of Heat Pumps, a special report in the IEA’s World Energy Outlook series, provides an outlook for heat pumps, identifying key opportunities to accelerate their deployment. It also highlights the major barriers and policy solutions, and explores the implications of an accelerated uptake of heat pumps for energy security, consumers’ energy bills, employment and efforts to tackle climate change.
Around 10% of space heating needs globally were met by heat pumps in 2021, but the pace of installation is growing rapidly with sales at record…
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Coal
…of the world’s coal use remain stable.
Global coal demand increased to a new all-time high in 2024 of around 8.8 billion tonnes, up 1.5% from 2023, as rising consumption in China, India, Indonesia and other emerging economies more than offset declines in advanced economies in Europe, North America and northeast Asia. However, several of those trends reversed in the first half of 2025 as demand declined in China and India; by contrast, coal use grew by around 10% in the United States. Even so, global coal demand is still set to increase slightly in 2025…
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Energy Efficiency
…pivotal moment. Many governments around the world are focused on stronger action on energy efficiency as a key policy priority in order to ensure energy security and affordability while reducing emissions. However, IEA analysis has shown that despite this increased ambition, global progress on energy efficiency is slower than in the last decade. This is locking in greater levels of wasted energy, as well as higher costs and emissions.
Global progress on energy efficiency picks up in 2025
Global primary energy intensity – the main metric for tracking efficiency progress – is on course to improve by 1.8% in 2025, up…
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Wind
…Although wind power continues to face supply chain issues, rising costs and permitting delays today, global capacity is still expected to nearly double to over 2 000 gigawatts (GW) by 2030 as both advanced and developing economies tackle these barriers.
Around 85% of capacity additions for wind are set to be onshore, with capacity expected to rise by more than 730 GW (or 45%) through 2030. Offshore wind additions of 140 GW are expected over the same period. Further boosting offshore capacity, which is particularly sensitive to macroeconomic and supply chain pressures, would require effective auction design and supportive policy.
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Bioenergy
Led by bioenergy, renewable fuels could approach 6% of energy demand from industry, buildings and transport in 2030
By 2030, renewable fuels are set to account for 5.5% of energy consumption from the industry, building and transport sectors. Demand is due to expand in all regions, but it is concentrated in China, Brazil, Europe, India and the United States, which collectively support more than two-thirds of the forecasted growth. All five countries and regions have dedicated support policies for several – and, in some cases, all – renewable fuels. These vary by fuel, sector and country, but they often include…
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Hydrogen
…oil refining and industry, remained the biggest consumers.
The uptake of low-emissions hydrogen is not yet meeting the expectations set by industry and governments in recent years, especially in light of a recent wave of project delays and cancellations. However, low-emissions hydrogen production is still set to see robust growth to 2030, rising from less than 1% of the total today to around 4% by 2030. This is a significant progress for a nascent sector, and it would put low-emissions hydrogen growth on par with the fast expansions of other clean energy technologies seen in recent years.
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Nuclear Power
…the world has the potential to open a new era for nuclear energy.
Power generation from the global fleet of nearly 420 active nuclear reactors is set to reach a record high in 2025 as Japan restarts production, maintenance works are completed in France, and new reactors begin commercial operations in various markets, including China, Europe, India and Korea. Meanwhile, more than 60 nuclear reactors are currently under construction – representing over 70 gigawatts (GW) of capacity – and governments’ interest in nuclear power is at its highest level since the oil crisis in the 1970s, reflecting efforts to bolster energy security…
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Hydroelectricity
…energy today, but that could change soon
Hydro is currently the third largest source of power generation worldwide after coal and natural gas. In 2024, it generated around 4 500 terawatt-hours of electricity, or 14% of the global total.
More than 150 gigawatts (GW) of new hydro capacity is set to come online by the end of the decade, mostly in emerging and developing economies. As a result, electricity generation from hydropower is expected to increase by 7% between 2025 and 2030. However, its share in global electricity generation is poised to decrease slightly by 2030 as other energy…
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Solar PV
…is added annually through the end of this decade. Even so, low costs, faster permitting and broad social acceptance are set to continue to drive the accelerating adoption of solar PV. As a result, capacity is set to more than double between 2025 and 2030 compared with the 2019 to 2024 period.
A growing share of variable renewable sources such as solar also comes with challenges. Curtailment levels and instances of negative electricity prices have been increasing in many markets. A rapid increase in power system flexibility and grid investment is necessary to integrate future growth securely and cost-effectively.