Global installed renewables capacity must triple by the end of the decade to keep climate action on track, according to the IEA.It's all part of the latest net zero roadmap - a scenario where 2030 is the new 2050 and electricity is the “new oil.”
The roadmap has been ratcheted up since it was first mapped out in 2021, when it famously declared there could be no new coal, oil or gas projects to reach net zero by 2050.
That somber call has not been heeded - instead, the world has seen two years of increased investment in fossil fuels.
In Australia, alone there are 114 new coal, oil and gas projects in the pipeline.Collectively they threaten 1.4 billion tonnes of greenhouse gases a year by 2030.
It's just the latest report to warn that keeping warming below 1.5°C now requires bringing net zero dates forward to 2030.
It also hinges on a significant increase in investment, especially in developing economies. In the new pathway, global clean energy spending rises from $US1.8 trillion in 2023 to $US4.5 trillion annually by the early 2030s.
The IEA once again makes the point that there is no room for fossil fuels if we want to stave off dangerous climate change.Instead, a whole lot of cost-effective, rapidly deployable renewables like wind and solar are needed.
The call to ramp up renewables comes at a critical point for Australia, which is experiencing a lull in new large scale renewables projects.
Beyond renewables, the report underscores the role booming technologies like EVs and heat pumps will play, providing nearly one-fifth of the emissions reductions to 2030.
The scenario also requires global methane emissions to plummet by 75% by 2030, and unproven technologies like CCUS and hydrogen need to make rapid progress in that time.