IEA at COP29

The IEA is a key contributor to the upcoming 29th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29), taking place under the Presidency of Azerbaijan from 11 November to 22 November 2024 in Baku.

• Helping countries translate the global energy pledges made at COP28 into actionable measures and guiding energy sector ambitions for the next round of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), leveraging insights from the IEA's new report, From Taking Stock to Taking Action: How to Implement the COP28 Energy Goals;
• Convening stakeholders and sharing analysis, reports and expertise to support additional bold energy outcomes at COP29 that advance implementation, such as the COP29 Energy Storage and Grids Pledge, action to drive down methane emissions and making this year a turning point on access to clean cooking;
• Helping to identify and further solutions to scale up clean energy investments in emerging and developing economies and to achieve inclusive energy transitions;
• Engaging with a wide range of energy and climate stakeholders across different sectors to share lessons learned and build consensus on key actions to advance global energy transitions.

Ahead of the Summit, the IEA has been collaborating with the COP29 Presidency to build global consensus on these topics. We have convened a new series of High-Level Energy Transition Dialogues, which have brought together energy and climate leaders from around the world, hosted a ministerial-level event on methane action, plus a series of regional workshops, and held the first-ever Global Summit on Clean Cooking in Africa to drive immediate progress on this issue. 

Our flagship World Energy Outlook 2024 report (free dataset available here) indicates that based on today’s policy settings, global carbon dioxide emissions are set to peak imminently. But the absence of a sharp decline after that means the world is on course for a rise of 2.4 °C in global average temperatures by the end of the century – well above the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 °C. However, achieving key COP28 energy objectives such as tripling global renewable energy capacity and doubling the pace of energy efficiency progress would close 80% of the gap.

In another recent IEA report, From Taking Stock to Taking Action: How to Implement the COP28 Energy Goals, we lay out what full implementation of the COP28 objectives would look like in practice, as well as what it would mean for the energy system and its emissions. It also explores the risks of partial implementation.

As a result of this analysis, the IEA has identified 5 major opportunities to consider during COP29:

1. Scale up energy storage and grids to help achieve the global goal of tripling renewable energy capacity this decade. The report finds that reaching this goal requires 1 500 gigawatts (GW) of energy storage capacity and adding or refurbishing 25 million kilometres of grids by 2030.
2. Ensure countries take a comprehensive approach to achieving the goal of doubling energy efficiency progress. This will require faster electrification and technical efficiency in advanced economies, stronger efficiency standards in emerging and developing economies, and delivering universal access to electricity and clean cooking.
3. Maintain a focus on the transition away from fossil fuels through actions to cut methane emissions and to retrofit, retire or repurpose fossil fuel assets, such as coal-fired power plants, in conjunction with the enactment of clean energy policies. Dialogue is also needed to plan the sequenced decline of fossil fuel investment as clean energy scales up.
4. Align the next round of Nationally Determined Contributions with the COP28 outcomes, ensuring they are economy-wide and, for major economies, include absolute emission reduction targets.
5. Recognise the urgent need for boosting clean energy investment in emerging and developing economies to support their transitions. This requires greater concessional funding and solutions to lower the cost of capital and increase private sector spending.

The IEA will share its insights and expertise on these opportunities and more through a wide range of events at COP29. More details will be shared soon.