-
Multiple Benefits of Energy Efficiency
As energy efficiency continues to gain attention as a key resource for economic and social development across all economies, understanding its real value is increasingly important. The multiple benefits approach seeks to expand the perspective of energy efficiency beyond the traditional measure of energy savings by identifying and measuring its impacts in full bloom.
-
Energy security
…demand; with rising air‑conditioner ownership and increasing temperatures, this value rose to 7 GW in 2024 and could further rise to 12 GW in 2030 without further efficiency action. If India were to experience similar heatwaves as in recent years – with temperature anomalies of over 4°C – the additional peak load would amount to 47 GW. However, if all new air conditioners in India were highly efficient (e.g. through increased minimum energy performance standards), peak load during a heatwave could be reduced by almost 9 GW or about 20%, significantly decreasing the risk of blackouts or brownouts. Need more information? IEA (2025), Energy Security.
-
Competitiveness
…Increasing energy efficiency can improve competitiveness at both the firm level – by reducing costs, improving operations and increasing product value – and at the country level, by reducing the amount of energy required to produce economic output. Key facts Today the world’s industries produce nearly 20% more value added with a given amount of energy, compared with two decades ago. In the industrial sector, energy management can lead to more than 10% in annual energy cost savings within three years, and up to 60% over the longer term as new savings are uncovered. On average, for every dollar in energy…
-
Outlook for Biogas and Biomethane
A global geospatial assessment Biogases play an important and growing role in energy systems. Produced locally using organic waste, biogas and biomethane can contribute to energy security, waste management, emissions reductions and agricultural development.In recent years, demand for biomethane – also known as “renewable natural gas” – has grown rapidly in many countries, supported by dozens of new policies. As a low-emissions substitute for natural gas, the use of biomethane has been targeted across a wide range of sectors, including power, industry, transport and buildings. This report presents a first-of-its-kind global geographical analysis of the untapped potential…
-
Energy savings
…increased activity, such as home building and increased home sizes. In the transport sector, most efficiency improvements were realised in passenger vehicles – around one-sixth of the total. These energy savings were higher than the increased demand due to the rising number, frequency and distance of people travelling. Efficiency improvements in freight transport, such as trucks, drove around 1% of the total energy savings. This was lower than the rise in freight transport activity over the same period. Need more information? IEA (2025), Energy End-uses and Efficiency Indicators.IEA (2023), Decomposition of change in IEA total final energy use.
-
Pledges to Progress 2025
An assessment of transparency of the oil and gas industry’s emissions reduction efforts At COP28, more than 50 of the world’s leading oil and gas companies launched the Oil and Gas Decarbonization Charter (OGDC), laying out a series of ambitions to achieve net zero operational emissions by 2050. As global methane and flaring emissions continue to rise, these ambitions are more important than ever to reduce energy waste and mitigate the harmful consequences of climate change.To support accountability and transparency, the International Energy Agency (IEA), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) International Methane Emissions Observatory (IMEO) and…
-
Economic growth
…impact of energy efficiency policies on macroeconomic performance still needs to be better understood and systematically measured, studies have highlighted some economic benefits:Growth in economic activityVarious studies have modelled the impact of select energy efficiency policies on economic activity and found a positive correlation. In Canada, an analysis of the country’s policy package at the time found that every USD 1 spent on energy efficiency programmes would generate between USD 4 and USD 7 in GDP between 2017 and 2030. In the United States, a study funded by the Department of Energy estimated that doubling energy productivity could…
-
Ukraine’s Energy Security
…importance. While Ukraine made strong strides in rebuilding and strengthening the resilience of its energy system this past spring and summer, the situation remains fragile, and the risk of huge disruptions and widespread destabilisation remains – particularly as Russia expands the scope and sophistication of its attacks.This analysis builds on the IEA’s September 2024 report, Ukraine’s Energy Security and the Coming Winter. It provides an update on the latest developments through October 2025 and proposes key actions that Ukraine and its partners can take to address urgent energy security vulnerabilities this winter and bolster longer-term energy resilience…
-
Global Methane Tracker 2025
…global warming and improving air quality. The energy sector – including oil, natural gas, coal and bioenergy – accounts for more than 35% of methane emissions from human activity and has some of the best opportunities to cut these emissions. The annually updated Global Methane Tracker is an essential tool for raising awareness about methane emissions across the energy sector and the opportunities to bring them down.The Tracker presents our latest sector-wide emissions estimates – based on the most recent data from satellites and measurement campaigns – and discusses different abatement options along with their associated costs. This 2025 update adds several…
-
IEA Guide to Reporting Energy Technology RD&D Budgets
…D) budgets. It outlines the methodology and classification system used to collect and structure RD&D data across IEA member countries, ensuring consistency and comparability. The manual is divided into two main sections: fundamentals of RD&D budget reporting and a detailed classification of energy technologies. It defines RD&D in alignment with the OECD Frascati Manual and clarifies the scope of public and private sector reporting. It also provides instructions for completing the IEA questionnaire, covering budgetary stages, metadata reporting, and common issues. The classification system spans nine major technology groups, including energy end uses, fossil fuels, renewables, nuclear…