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Global battery markets are growing strongly – and so are the supply risks
part 1- lithium-ion batteries Batteries’ importance is increasing across key sectors including autos, power, data centres and beyond The global lithium-ion battery market exceeded USD 150 billion in 2025, an increase of over 20% from 2024, but its economic and strategic significance extends far beyond market size. Batteries are becoming a cornerstone of the automotive sector, a critical source of flexibility for power systems, and an increasingly important source of back-up power for digital infrastructure, including data centres and artificial intelligence.Beyond energy, batteries remain indispensable for a wide range of industrial and strategic applications, from portable…
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China’s Official Energy Finance in Emerging and Developing Economies Case 4. TFC Solar PV project in South Africa
Project overview and impact South Africa faces significant challenges regarding electricity reliability. The lack of investment, coupled with increasing demand have led to chronic load shedding, with household and industrial consumers affected. Energy-intensive sectors, such as ferrochrome smelting, face rising operational costs, production losses and growing pressure to reduce emissions in line with national and international climate objectives. To address power shortages, the South African government, since 2023, has allowed independent power producers to build power plants above 100 MW and sell electricity directly to private customers without an issued generation license.The Tubaste Ferrochrome (TFC) solar PV power…
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Energy Technology Perspectives 2026 Supply chain risks and industrial competitiveness
Supply chain risks Supply chain security remains a challenge: Clean energy technology manufacturing is highly geographically concentrated, with China as the main supplier in most supply chain stages. China accounts for around 85% of solar and 80% of lithium-ion battery supply chain production capacity, and even higher shares for PV wafers (95%) and anode materials (97%). Cybersecurity considerations further enhance the importance of addressing security of supply. An “N-1” assessment, which models the impact of losing the largest exporter in each supply chain, shows that for the final downstream stages of most of the four technologies examined – solar…
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Copper prices have hit record highs, but smelters face mounting strategic pressures
copper Copper markets enter uncharted territory as structural and short-term pressures converge Copper prices have surged to record highs this year, briefly exceeding USD 14 500 per tonne (intraday) in January 2026, having only passed USD 12 000 per tonne for the first time in December 2025. The unprecedented price levels have been driven by some important short-term developments, including supply disruptions at several major mines and a build-up of US copper inventories due to tariff uncertainty. But they have also been underpinned by some underlying factors, such as challenges in developing new copper mines and the…
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Key Questions on Energy and AI
Following the publication of the IEA’s landmark Energy and AI report in 2025, this report examines how the energy and AI nexus has evolved amid surging investment in data centres and rapid advances in model capabilities. Drawing on fresh datasets and analysis, it explores where electricity demand is rising, how quickly grids and supply chains can respond, and what these shifts mean for energy security, affordability and sustainability.
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Chinese Taipei
The Taiwanese government enacted in the late 2010s the Statute for Renewable Energy Development to reduce CO2 emissions, improve energy diversification and promote green-energy industries. The government is seeking to generate 8% of electricity from renewables by 2025.
- Overview
- Energy mix
- Emissions
- Electricity
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+ 5 pages
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Switzerland
Switzerland has notably decoupled economic growth from energy use despite strong population growth. This trend should continue, and the energy efficiency first principle should be reflected in all climate and energy legislation. Reaching the 2050 net zero emissions target and addressing the growing winter electricity gap between demand and production requires an unprecedented volume of additional renewable generation capacity, especially wind and hydro. For this, the country needs to shorten the complex and extended administrative and legal permitting process. This will also help advancing investments in grid infrastructure to prepare for more decentralised and variable generation. Switzerland should also align…
- Overview
- Energy mix
- Emissions
- Electricity
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+ 5 pages
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Battery storage is scaling up and taking on a larger system role
Commentary As the result of falling costs and greater flexibility needs, battery storage is playing a growing role in power systems worldwide, acting as a “multi-tool” that can provide a range of critical system services at once. According to the latest data, the deployment of batteries expanded strongly in 2025 and broadened across markets – with rapid growth in countries such as Australia and Saudi Arabia, where storage is increasingly being used to support the integration of rising shares of variable renewables.In regions that have been at the forefront of renewable integration and battery deployment, batteries now play an…
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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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Poland
Poland’s energy system has seen progress on energy transition, despite its reliance on domestic hard coal and lignite. For example, Poland has one of the fastest growing solar PV markets in the European Union and has also seen a strong uptake of heat pumps. Poland is pushing to become a major player in offshore wind, aiming for at least 3.4 GW of capacity by 2030. However, stronger efforts are needed across all sectors to accelerate energy transition and Poland would benefit from greater electricity interconnections with the rest of Europe.
- Overview
- Energy mix
- Emissions
- Electricity
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+ 5 pages
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