
World Energy Investment 2018
Investing in our energy future
"The decline in global investment for renewables and energy efficiency combined could threaten the expansion of clean energy needed to meet energy security, climate and clean-air goals. While we would need this investment to go up rapidly, it is disappointing to find that it might be falling this year.”
Fatih Birol, Executive Director, IEA
The IEA's World Energy Investment provides a wealth of data and analysis for decision making by governments, the energy industry and financial institutions to set policy frameworks, implement business strategies, finance new projects and develop new technologies. It highlights the ways in which investment decisions taken today are determining how energy supply and demand will unfold tomorrow.
This year's edition points to another year of falling investment in 2017, and that energy investment is failing to keep up with energy security and sustainability goals.

Key findings from World Energy Investment 2018
Government policies are playing a growing role in driving private spending
Across all power sector investments, more than 95% of investment is now based on regulation or contracts for remuneration.
Investment in energy efficiency is particularly linked to government policy, often through energy performance standards.
Total Wholesale market pricing 20203 Distributed generation (retail/regulated tariff) 83589 Regulated networks 303121 Regulated/contracted utility-scale generation 343518
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Clean energy R&D investment is finally on the rise
Government low-carbon energy RD&D spending in 2017 was estimated to have increased by 13% in 2017. This is a welcome increase after years of decreases and stagnation. Much of the increase in low-carbon energy technology RD&D spending is driven by North America, more than compensating for declines in Europe and Japan.
North America Europe Asia and Oceania Rest of World 2012 7.296530441 5.404292 6.394819866 0.379157715 2013 6.878272327 5.221181 5.964687088 0.532621955 2014 6.865946104 6.584787 5.879336734 0.49667507 2015 6.635047229 6.795485568 5.632852182 0.587942398 2016 6.87596422 6.475207447 5.435000684 0.414820123 2017 est. 7.80689265 7.113363235 6.374249154 0.337817445
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Yet investment in carbon capture, utilisation and storage is falling behind
Commercial incentive as low as USD 40 per tonne of CO2sequestered could trigger investment in the capture, utilisation and storage of up to 450 million tonnes of CO2.
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