Electricity in a Climate-Constrained World: Data & Analyses

After experiencing a historic drop in 2009, electricity generation reached a record high in 2010, confirming the close linkage between economic growth and electricity usage. Unfortunately, CO2 emissions from electricity have also resumed their growth: electricity remains the single-largest source of CO2 emissions from energy. The imperative to “decarbonise” electricity and improve end-use efficiency remains essential to the global fight against climate change. The IEA report, Electricity in a Climate-Constrained World, provides an authoritative resource on progress to date in this area, including statistics related to CO2 and the electricity sector across ten regions of the world (supply, end use and capacity additions). It also presents topical analyses on the challenge of rapidly curbing CO2 emissions from electricity. Looking at policy instruments, it focuses on emissions trading in China, using energy efficiency to manage electricity supply crises and combining policy instruments for effective CO2 reductions. On regulatory issues, it asks whether deregulation can deliver decarbonisation and assesses the role of state-owned enterprises in emerging economies. And from technology perspectives, it explores the rise of new end uses, the role of electricity storage, biomass use in Brazil, and the potential of carbon capture and storage for "negative emissions" electricity supply.