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Global Methane Tracker 2025 Understanding methane emissions
…it can lead to ground-level (tropospheric) ozone, a dangerous pollutant. Methane leaks also present explosion risks. The latest Global Methane Budget estimates annual global methane emissions to be around 610 Mt, with human activity responsible for almost two‑thirds of the total and natural sources accounting for the rest. IEA analysis suggests that the energy sector was responsible for around 145 Mt of methane emissions in 2024 – more than 35% of the total amount attributable to human activity. Oil operations were responsible for around 45 Mt, natural gas operations for nearly 35 Mt, and abandoned wells for around 3 Mt…
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Financing Electricity Access in Africa State of play
Understanding electricity access financing As of 2024, around 600 million people in sub-Saharan Africa (47% of the population) did not have access to electricity. With electrification barely keeping up with population growth rates, progress remains far off the pace envisaged both by African governments and international organisations. Reaching universal access requires a cost-effective, multi-technology approach, with grid extension, mini-grids and stand-alone systems all playing a role to ensure affordable service provision to unelectrified communities. Notably, financing has been one of the primary impediments to growth.For the first time, the IEA has tracked electricity access financing commitments…
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Ukraine’s Energy Security As Ukraine heads into another heating season, six measures can help improve energy security
Air defence remains the best method to protect Ukraine’s critical energy and civilian infrastructure. However, there are other steps that can be taken to increase Ukraine’s energy security ahead of and during the coming winter. The IEA proposes six key actions for Ukraine and its partners to help address ongoing energy security challenges. Action 1: Boost protections for critical energy infrastructure and continue improving equipment supply chains Strengthening the security of critical energy infrastructure across Ukraine is vital to maintaining capacity this winter. A multilayered defence strategy, whereby air defence is combined with passive defence measures, can serve…
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Global Hydrogen Review 2025 Progress summary dashboard
Progress summary dashboard
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Multiple Benefits of Energy Efficiency for Business Operational benefits
For every dollar in energy cost savings, productivity gains can deliver up to an extra 30 cents of value Energy efficiency measures can improve how firms use labour, equipment and materials, leading to gains that go beyond reduced energy use. These improvements are often driven by more efficient, precise and optimised processes. By reducing losses – such as excess heat, inefficient combustion or friction – equipment operates more smoothly and reliably. Electrified processes can further enhance efficiency by reducing the number of moving parts and points of failure.This improved performance leads directly to higher productivity. More efficient production lines enable better…
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Gas Market Lessons from the 2022-2023 Energy Crisis Anatomy of a natural gas crisis
Sudden and drastic reduction in Russian pipeline gas deliveries to Europe In the run-up to the gas supply shock, Russian natural gas (pipeline and LNG combined) accounted for a growing share of European gas supply. Prior to 2010, Russian supply made up a relatively steady 30% of the European Union’s gas supply. However, the combination of plateauing demand and rapid decline in EU domestic production, which started in the early 2010s (linked to the decision to phase out the historical Groningen gas field in the Netherlands), led to growing dependency on gas imports across the European Union. The…
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Unlocking Ukraine’s Hydrogen Opportunity: A Roadmap Taking stock of the effect of war
…This is despite industrial electricity demand having halved over the same period and residential demand falling by about 20%.Ukraine was a net gas importer prior to the invasion, and served as a transit country for gas from Russia to the European Union. In 2024, local demand was largely met with domestic production. The gas network’s export capacity of 146 bcm stopped being used at the end of 2024, when Russia’s transit contract expired. Ukraine has an underground gas storage capacity of 32 bcm.The weighted average cost of capital (WACC) was 12% for solar PV and onshore wind before Russia…
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Energy and AI AI and energy security
The nexus between energy and AI has implications for energy security. There are at least two broad dimensions to this relationship. The first arises from the impact of AI on energy security. AI can be – and indeed already is being – applied to address specific challenges relating to energy security concerns. At the same time, greater digitalisation and connectivity in the energy sector – which enable the use of AI – can create new energy security challenges. The second dimension arises from the need to mitigate energy sector-related supply chain risks, which have implications for the scaling up of data centres to meet…
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Global Methane Tracker 2026 Strategies to speed action
Making a business case for methane abatement Tackling methane emissions from fossil-fuel operations is one of the quickest and cheapest ways to curb global greenhouse gas emissions. Most of the methane abatement measures available today in the oil and gas sector would be cost-effective at a carbon price of about USD 20 per tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2‑eq). Methane abatement has not caught on as widely as it could, for several reasons. Companies may underestimate of the scale of the problem or be unaware of the available solutions. Capital is often steered toward higher-profile projects, while corporate…
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China’s Official Energy Finance in Emerging and Developing Economies Case 3. Saudi Arabia’s first green full-process heavy plate mill project
…s ambitions to become a global leader in low emissions hydrogen and sustainable industrial value chains. By localising heavy-plate supply, the project is expected to reduce import dependence, strengthen domestic industrial capabilities and create a platform for exporting low-carbon steel products from the Gulf.This complex is supported by Saudi Arabia’s Shareek program for large enterprises, which supports large industrial investment projects through financing, expedited approvals, and procurement support. Financing model and China’s role The project is structured through a joint venture. BAP Al-Khair Steel Company was established in 2024 with a 50:25:25…
