CO₂ emissions from the energy sector set a new record in 2023

Real efforts to decarbonize the energy system have not yet translated into reductions in global CO emissions.₂ Connected to this field. But the widespread deployment of renewable energy and low-carbon technologies has made it possible to limit their increase in recent years. This observation is confirmed by the 2023 figures published on Friday 1^er March, International Energy Agency (IEA).

In 2023, emissions from the energy sector, i.e. those associated with the combustion of fossil fuels (coal, oil and gas) and industrial processes, will once again reach a new record (37.4 billion tons). Paradoxically, it is specifically the consequences of climate change, caused by the burning of fossil fuels, that explain this increase: extreme and prolonged droughts have hit many countries, including the United States and China, leading to a decline in hydroelectric production.

To compensate for this reduction, these countries had to use more fossil fuels to generate electricity, which produced 170 million tons of CO.₂ extra. According to the IEA, without this hydroelectric production “unusually weak”Global CO emissions₂ The decline in 2023 would have been associated with electricity production – and not energy – in 2023. Milder temperatures in 2023, which was the warmest year on record, however also made it possible to limit energy use for heating.

Post-Covid-19 economic recovery in China

The recovery in global air traffic, which is expected to increase by 35% in 2023 compared to 2022, and the continued economic recovery in China post-Covid-19 are also contributing significantly to the increase in emissions. However, China is a key player in the deployment of low-carbon technologies, as it accounts for nearly 60% of new capacity installed in solar, wind and electric vehicles in 2023. But this phenomenal growth is not enough to meet the sharp growth in energy demand.

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If the overall results are not good, the International Energy Agency emphasizes that the unprecedented deployment of these low-carbon technologies observed in 2023 has made it possible to avoid even greater reliance on oil, gas and coal. If emissions increased by 410 million tons (+ 1.1% compared to 2022), the growth is less significant than in 2022 (+ 490 million tons). And, over the past five years, an overall increase in CO emissions, without using low-carbon energy₂

The IEA estimates that the sector would have been three times more important.

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