The International Energy Agency assesses the threats and opportunities facing the global energy system based on an analysis of energy and climate trends and state that there is a wide difference between the current government policy commitments and the international goal of limiting the long-term increase in the global mean temperature to 2oC above pre-industrial levels highlighting the critical role of governments to define the objectives and implement the policies necessary to shape our energy future.In its annual “World Energy Outlook 2011”, it affirms a shift in dynamics of energy markets away from the OECD countries, a 25 year investment of 38 trillion dollars in energy infrastructure with the share of fossil fuels in primary energy consumption declining slightly from 81% in 2010 to 75% in 2035.
It predicts an increasing role for natural gas both from conventional as well as unconventional sources, and a 15% share for non-hydro renewables by 2035. In one of the scenarios, India is projected to be the second largest coal consumer after China and the largest coal importer from the 2020s and coal could be boosted by widespread deployment of more efficient coal-fired power plants and carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies while Russia’s large energy resources would underpin its continuing role as a cornerstone of the global energy economy over the coming decades.
It predicts an increasing role for natural gas both from conventional as well as unconventional sources, and a 15% share for non-hydro renewables by 2035. In one of the scenarios, India is projected to be the second largest coal consumer after China and the largest coal importer from the 2020s and coal could be boosted by widespread deployment of more efficient coal-fired power plants and carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies while Russia’s large energy resources would underpin its continuing role as a cornerstone of the global energy economy over the coming decades.
