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NEWS

NET ZERO BY 2050 – EXTRACTS FROM IEA’S LATEST REPORT

he International Energy Agency (IEA) has 2050 is consistent with efforts to limit the long-term increase in average global temperatures to 1,5°C.
published a new report on the world’s This calls for nothing less than a complete transformation of how we produce, transport, and consume
Tenergy sector’s carbon emissions and the energy. The growing political consensus on reaching net zero is cause for considerable optimism about the
risk these emissions pose to the world’s climate. progress the world can make, but the changes required to reach net-zero emissions globally by 2050 are
The report, Net zero by 2050, outlines the poorly understood.
facts and figures of the problem and the steps A huge amount of work is needed to turn today’s impressive ambitions into reality, especially given the
which must be taken, sooner rather than later, to range of different situations among countries and their differing capacities to make the necessary changes.
mitigate these risks. The following is a series of November 2021 will see the most important UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
extracts from the report. Conference of the Parties (COP 26) since the Paris Agreement was signed in 2015.
As COP 26 approaches, an increasing number of countries have announced long-term goals to achieve
Click here to download the full report net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions over the coming decades. On 31 March 2021, the International
Energy Agency (IEA) hosted a Net Zero Summit to take stock of the growing list of commitments from
We are approaching a decisive moment for countries and companies to reach the goals of the Paris Agreement, and to focus on the actions necessary
international efforts to tackle the climate crisis to start turning those net zero goals into reality.
– a great challenge of our times. The number of Achieving those goals will be demanding. The Covid-19 pandemic delivered a major shock to the world
countries that have pledged to reach net-zero economy, resulting in an unprecedented 5,8% decline in CO 2 emissions in 2020.
emissions by mid-century or soon after continues However, our monthly data show that global energy-related CO 2 emissions started to climb again in
to grow, but so do global greenhouse gas December 2020, and we estimate that they will rebound to around 33 Gt of CO 2 in 2021, only 1,2% below
emissions. This gap between rhetoric and action the level in 2019 (IEA, 2021). Sustainable economic recovery packages offered a unique opportunity to
needs to close if we are to have a fighting chance make 2019 the definitive peak in global emissions, but the evidence so far points to a rebound in emissions
of reaching net zero by 2050 and limiting the rise in parallel with renewed economic growth, at least in the near term (IEA, 2020a).
in global temperatures to 1,5°C. Recent IEA analyses examined the technologies and policies needed for countries and regions to
Doing so requires nothing short of a total achieve net-zero emissions energy systems. The World Energy Outlook 2020 examined what would be
transformation of the energy systems that needed over the period to 2030 to put the world on a path towards net-zero emissions by 2050 in the
underpin our economies. We are in a critical year context of the pandemic-related economic recovery (IEA, 2020b).
at the start of a critical decade for these efforts. The Faster Innovation Case in Energy Technology Perspectives 2020 explored whether net-zero
The 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) of emissions could be achieved globally by 2050 through accelerated energy technology development
the United Nations Framework Convention on and deployment alone: it showed that, relative to baseline trends, almost half of the emissions savings
Climate Change in November is the focal point needed in 2050 to reach net-zero emissions rely on technologies that are not yet commercially available
for strengthening global ambitions and action (IEA, 2020c).
on climate by building on the foundations of the This special report, Net Zero by 2050, prepared at the request of the UK President of the COP 26,
2015 Paris Agreement. incorporates the insights and lessons learned from both reports to create a comprehensive and detailed
The energy sector is the source of around pathway, or roadmap, to achieve net-zero energy-related and industrial process CO 2 emissions globally by
three-quarters of greenhouse gas emissions 2050. It assesses the costs of achieving this goal, the likely impacts on employment and the economy, and
today and holds the key to averting the worst the wider implications for the world. It also highlights the key milestones for technologies, infrastructure,
effects of climate change, perhaps the greatest investment, and policy that are needed along the road to 2050.
challenge humankind has faced. Reducing global
carbon dioxide (CO 2) emissions to net zero by The report is set out in four chapters:
Chapter 1 explores the outlook for global CO 2 emissions and energy supply and use based on existing
policies and pledges. It sets out projections of global energy use and emissions based on the Stated Policies
Scenario (STEPS), which includes only the firm policies that are in place or have been announced by
countries, including Nationally Determined Contributions. It also examines the Announced Pledges Case
(APC), a variant of the STEPS that assumes that all of the net zero targets announced by countries around
the world to date are met in full.
Chapter 2 presents the Net-Zero Emissions by 2050 Scenario (NZE), which describes how energy
demand, and the energy mix will need to evolve if the world is to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. It
also assesses the corresponding investment needs and explores key uncertainties surrounding technology
and consumer behaviour.
Chapters 3 and 4 examine the implications of the NZE for various sectors, covering fossil fuel supply,
the supply of low-emissions fuels (such as hydrogen, ammonia, biofuels, synthetic fuels and biomethane)
and the electricity, transport, industry and buildings sectors, the economy, the energy industry, citizens,
and governments. They highlight the key changes required to achieve net-zero emissions in the NZE and
the major milestones that are needed along the way.

Click here to download the full report

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