Even if renewable energies are being expanded faster than ever before, less fossil fuels are not being used as a result. Globally, energy-related greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise.
Although the importance of renewable energies is increasing, the experts of the global industry association Energy Institute do not find a global decline in fossil fuels in a recent study. The 82 percent lead of oil, gas and coal products in meeting most energy demand has been cemented in 2022, according to the industry’s annual World Energy Report. This is evident regardless of the largest increase to date in renewable energies with a total of 266 gigawatts.
Global energy demand rose by around one percent. Although this was lower growth than in the previous year (5.5 percent), demand was still around three percent above the level before the corona pandemic in 2019. According to the information, energy consumption increased everywhere except in Europe.
“Against the requirements of the Paris Agreement”
“Despite continued strong growth in wind and solar power in the power sector, energy-related greenhouse gas emissions have continued to rise around the world,” said UK-based association President Juliet Davenport. “We are still moving in the opposite direction to what the Paris Agreement intended.”
According to scientists, global greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced by around 43 percent by 2030 compared to 2019 in order to achieve the goals of the Paris climate agreement. This aims to limit global warming to well below two degrees.
Wind is Germany’s most important source of electricity
At the beginning of the year, wind power was again the most important energy source for electricity in Germany – ahead of coal. Nevertheless, conventional energy sources still account for more than half of electricity production in this country.
Coal, gas, nuclear power and other energy sources continued to produce more than half of Germany’s electricity at 51.4 percent in the first quarter of this year. Wind, hydropower, photovoltaics and biogas reached 48.6 percent in the first three months of the year.