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State of Energy Policy 2026 Executive summary
Governments are navigating a sustained period of risks and disruptions In recent years, energy has been elevated to a core issue of national and economic security. Global supply chain disruptions after the Covid‑19 pandemic, Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, trade restrictions on key products including critical minerals, several years of extreme heat affecting energy systems and conflicts affecting major energy suppliers have unfolded in successive waves over the past five years. These events have brought long-standing energy security concerns back into sharp focus while exposing new vulnerabilities. They also highlight energy’s central role in geopolitics, with…
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Global Hydrogen Review 2026 Trade and infrastructure
Trade remains a key driver of low-emissions hydrogen projects, and would underpin over 40% of announced volumes by 2030 if all projects materialise. Less than 8% of this, around 1 Mtpa H₂-eq (hydrogen equivalent), comes from projects that are operational, in construction, or have committed investments, compared with around 16% across the overall project pipeline.First shipments of low-emissions hydrogen are taking place, enabling trials of logistics and certification approaches. Long-term bilateral contracts dominate, particularly for ammonia and ammonia-derived fertilisers, while hot briquetted iron (HBI) is gaining prominence.Announced hydrogen pipeline projects, including new and repurposed natural…
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Global Energy and Climate Model Announced Pledges Scenario (APS)
The 2025 edition of the World Energy Outlook (WEO) does not include the Announced Pledges Scenario. Our assessment of the new round of NDCs due this year, generally the period to 2035, will follow once there is a more complete picture of these pledges.The Announced Pledges Scenario (APS), introduced in 2021, illustrates the extent to which announced ambitions and targets can deliver the emissions reductions needed to achieve net zero emissions by 2050. In the WEO-2024, the APS includes all recent major national announcements as of the end of August 2024, both 2030 targets and longer-term net zero…
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State of Energy Policy 2026 Government energy spending
Government energy spending declined as affordability measures were rolled back after 2022 crisis, though investment support continues above historical levels The energy sector has historically accounted for a relatively small share of government budgets, averaging around 1% in most countries. Over the past five years, however, government spending on energy has doubled compared with 2019 levels, reaching around 1.4% of total direct government expenditure in 2025. Levels have varied by country, with some reaching up to 5% of general expenditure. Although spending fell from its peak in 2023, disbursements in 2024 and 2025 remained significantly higher than in the…
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Breakthrough Agenda Report 2025 Power
State of the transition Emissions Global emissions from electricity generation rose by 1.2% in 2024 to around 13.9 Gt of CO2, following an increase of 1.6% in 2023.The global emissions intensity of electricity generation is on a contracting trend, with a record 3% reduction in 2024 compared to 1% in 2023. This improvement reflects the rapid growth in renewable energy and nuclear electricity production relative to rising demand. Cost On an levelised cost of electricity (LCOE) basis, renewables remained the most cost-competitive option for new electricity generation in 2024.Onshore wind remained the most affordable…
- Executive summary
- Power
- Hydrogen
- Road transport
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+ 4 pages
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Lithuania 2025 Executive summary
Energy independence is the key principle guiding Lithuania’s energy strategy. Lithuania moved with pace and determination to end its reliance on energy imports from the Russian Federation (hereafter, “Russia”). Thanks to strategic infrastructure investments, Lithuania is an important regional energy hub, and with the recently completed electricity grid synchronisation with the Continental European Synchronous Area (CESA), the Baltic states have successfully disconnected from the Russian-controlled system. While these are important achievements, Lithuania’s final energy consumption remains highly reliant on imported fossil fuels, notably in transport, and a significant share of electricity demand is met by imports. This…
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Global EV Outlook 2026 Cutting through the noise
Cutting through the noise
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The Value of Demand Flexibility Executive summary
With global electricity demand rising and set to add around 1 000 TWh each year until 2035, new ways of managing the balance between supply and demand are needed. Demand flexibility – the ability to adjust the timing or amount of electricity use in response to system needs – is central to help achieve this balance. Advances in digitalisation, including the growing use of AI tools, are further enhancing the ability to deploy flexibility effectively.This policy brief, part of the 3DEN Initiative, presents a concise framework for understanding demand flexibility and its value across the energy system, highlighting that it can:Enhance power…
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Timur Gül
Chief Energy Technology Officer. Timur Gül, a German national, was appointed Chief Energy Technology Officer of the International Energy Agency (IEA) in October 2023. In this capacity, he oversees IEA analysis of innovative new and emerging clean energy technologies and their supply chains across a range of sectors. Mr. Gül is also Head of the Energy Technology Policy Division, with responsibility for the IEA’s flagship technology publication Energy Technology Perspectives, the IEA Energy Innovation Forum, the IEA’s Technology and Innovation Advisory Board as well as the IEA’s Technology Collaboration network.Having joined the IEA in 2009, Mr. Gül previously was a lead author of the IEA’s World Energy Outlook (WEO). Prior to his time at the IEA, he was a researcher at Paul Scherrer Institute in Switzerland.Timur Gül holds a PhD from the Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology (ETH) Zurich in Switzerland. He also holds a Master degree in Environmental Engineering from the Royal Institute...
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Breakthrough Agenda Report 2025 Fertilisers
State of the transition Emissions Around 60-70% of fertiliser-related GHG emissions occur during fertiliser use; the rest occur during production. In total, fertilisers emit around 1.23 Gt CO2 equivalent per year globally.The emissions intensity of ammonia has fallen by 1.1% annually over the last 10 years, driven primarily by improvements in energy efficiency. Cost Excluding policies such as CO2 pricing, ammonia production today is estimated to cost on average 30% more using carbon capture and storage (CCS) and three times more using electrolysis when compared to conventional routes. Scale and narrowing price differentials with fossil fuels can…
- Executive summary
- Power
- Hydrogen
- Road transport
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+ 4 pages