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World Energy Investment 2025 Africa
Africa is faced with new challenges and opportunities as the composition and source of investment flows in the continent shift Africa is characterised by strong regional imbalances. South Africa and North Africa account for less than 20% of the population but more than 45% of energy investment and over 65% of installed electrical capacity. By contrast, Sub-Saharan Africa, home to most of the region’s population, receives less energy investment and has limited access to reliable electricity. New connection rates have steadily increased since 2000 but remain well below the universal access target set for 2030, with 600 million…
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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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Demand and Supply Measures for the Steel and Cement Transition Executive summary
The seeds for producing and using near-zero emissions materials have been planted, but acceleration is needed The industry sector requires a massive scale-up of markets for transformative near-zero emissions materials to contribute to the achievement of internationally-agreed government objectives for net zero emissions. Such scale-up requires the production and use of these materials to grow from essentially zero today to capture nearly the entire market within the next few decades, shifting away from high-emissions conventional production and demand. The steel and cement sectors account for 14% of global energy and process-related emissions on…
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Universal Access to Clean Cooking in Africa Clean cooking infrastructure
The right ingredients Extending access depends on new infrastructure, with differing requirements across technologies and regions. This chapter maps for the first time ever Africa’s existing clean cooking infrastructure, highlighting gaps and key considerations for expansion.Widening liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) distribution in sub-Saharan Africa requires the buildout of infrastructure. This includes additional primary storage – which is concentrated in oil producing states today – and improved port infrastructure, as 50% of LPG demand in the region is imported. On the distribution side, additional bottling facilities and specialised vehicles for safe transportation are required. With nearly 20 plants operating, cylinder manufacturing…
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World Energy Investment 2026 How we track investment in energy
Tracking energy investment The way investment is measured across the energy spectrum varies, largely because of differences in the availability of data and the nature of expenditures. This document highlights the methodology used to ensure that the estimates are consistent and comparable across sectors in the World Energy Investment 2026 (WEI 2026) report and other publications from the International Energy Agency. The IEA measures investment as the ongoing capital spending on assets. For some sectors, such as power generation, this investment is spread out evenly from the year in which a new plant or upgrade of an existing one takes…
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Kira West
Former World Energy Outlook Analyst.
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Outlook for Biogas and Biomethane Key issues affecting biogas and biomethane projects
Development of feedstocks Differences in policy implementation and feedstock availability has resulted in feedstock mixes that vary widely by country and region: In Europe, biogas production was initially supported by feed-in tariffs and relied on energy crops as an important feedstock. Given the land use and biodiversity concerns associated with energy crops, this landscape has since changed, with several European countries implementing restrictions on their usage. The feedstock mix in Europe is now moving towards a mix of agricultural residues, animal manure, organic municipal solid waste and industrial waste. In China, household and farm biodigesters were central to biogas…
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Energy Efficiency Policy Toolkit Financing Energy Efficiency
Global energy investment continues to grow despite a challenging geopolitical environment. According to the IEA’s World Energy Investment 2026 report, total spending is expected to reach USD 3.4 trillion in 2026, a 5% increase from 2025. Clean energy investment is projected to remain around USD 2.2 trillion, representing nearly two‑thirds of total energy spending and continuing to outpace fossil fuels. Investment in electricity systems such as grids, storage, and electrification, is increasingly driven by energy security concerns and rising electricity demand. Energy efficiency also remains essential to strengthening system resilience, reducing costs for consumers and businesses, and lowering greenhouse gas emissions…
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Kadri Simson
EU Commissioner for Energy.
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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
Project overview and impact Saudi Arabia is pursuing an ambitious industrial transformation under Vision 2030, including efforts to localise heavy industries, expand low-carbon manufacturing and diversify export capacity. Steel demand is expected to grow steadily due to investment in hydrogen, ammonia, shipbuilding, offshore engineering and large-scale infrastructure. However, the country currently imports nearly all of its heavy plate steel, and domestic production has lagged the needs of an economy shifting towards more capital-intensive sectors and cleaner industrial processes.A new heavy-plate complex developed jointly by China Baowu Steel Group, Saudi Aramco and the Public Investment Fund…
