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IEA warns slowdown in energy efficiency

gains threatens climate goals

GLOBAL THE IEA has warned that progress in energy energy-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emis-
efficiency is set to slow to less than 1% in 2020, sions that is required over the next two decades
the lowest rate in 10 years and a major brake on to put the world on a path to meeting interna-
reaching major energy and climate goals. tional energy and climate goals, according to IEA
The IEA said this week that slowing develop- analysis.
ment was the result of the economic impacts of But short-term trends resulting from the
the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis. COVID-19 crisis are slowing improvements
This meant that reaching international in the energy intensity of the global economy,
energy and climate goals would now be more meaning that every unit of economic output uses
difficult, making it more critical than ever that more energy than it would do otherwise.
governments take strong action. This is mainly because energy-intensive
Global primary energy intensity – a key indi- industries, such as metals manufacturing and
cator of how efficiently the world’s economic chemicals, appear to have been less severely
activity uses energy – is expected to improve affected by the crisis than other, less intensive
by less than 1% this year, the weakest rate since parts of the economy.
2010, the IEA said in Energy Efficiency 2020, the The stimulus packages governments are
latest edition of its annual update on efficiency introducing as part of their economic recovery
trends. plans will heavily influence future efficiency
This is well below the level of progress needed trends.
to achieve the world’s shared goals for address- They have the potential to drive investments
ing climate change, reducing air pollution and and structural changes that can reduce energy
increasing access to energy, the IEA warned. intensity across all sectors of the economy.
The disappointing trends are being exacer- More than 60% of the funding for energy effi-
bated by a plunge in investments in energy-ef- ciency-related measures in stimulus packages
ficient buildings, equipment and vehicles amid announced by governments to date has focused
the economic crisis triggered by the pandemic, on either the buildings sector or on accelerating
the report finds. the shift to electric vehicles (EVs), including new
Purchases of new cars, which are more effi- vehicle charging infrastructure.
cient than older models, have slowed, while con- Many opportunities remain untapped, how-
struction of new, more efficient homes and other ever, with IEA tracking revealing a spending
buildings is also anticipated to decelerate. imbalance across sectors.
In industry and commercial buildings, lower No announcements have been made to step
energy prices have extended payback periods up the penetration of super-efficient appliances,
for key efficiency measures by as much as 40%, while spending on vehicle efficiency beyond EVs
reducing their attractiveness compared to other is minimal to date.
investments. The planned spending is also imbalanced on a
Overall, investment in energy efficiency regional basis, with announcements from Euro-
worldwide is on course to fall by 9% in 2020. pean countries dwarfing those from other parts
“Together with renewables, energy efficiency of the world.
is one of the mainstays of global efforts to reach Spending in Europe accounts for 86% of
energy and climate goals. While our recent anal- global public stimulus announcements for effi-
ysis shows encouraging momentum for renew- ciency, with the remaining 14% split between the
ables, I’m very concerned that improvements in Asia-Pacific region and North America.
global energy efficiency are now at their slowest “We welcome plans by governments to boost
rate in a decade,” said Fatih Birol, the Executive spending on energy efficiency in response to the
Director of the IEA. economic crisis, but what we have seen so far is
“For governments that are serious about uneven and far from enough,” said Birol.
boosting energy efficiency, the litmus test will be “Energy efficiency should be at the top of
the amount of resources they devote to it in their to-do lists for governments pursuing a sustain-
economic recovery packages, where efficiency able recovery – it is a jobs machine, it gets eco-
measures can help drive economic growth and nomic activity going, it saves consumers money,
job creation.” it modernises vital infrastructure and it reduces
Improvements in energy efficiency can emissions. There’s no excuse not to put far more
contribute around half of the reduction in resources behind it.”™

P6 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 49 09•December•2020