A
solar
farm
stretches
across
an
aquatic
farm
built
on
land
subsided
by
coal
mining
in
Suixi
County,
central
China’s
Anhui
province
on
April
28,
2025.
WAN
SC
/
Feature
China
/
Future
Publishing
via
Getty
Images
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An
increase
in
spending
on
clean
energy
is
expected
to
drive
record
global
energy
investment
of
3.3
trillion
in
2025,
with
2.2
trillion
of
that
in
“clean-energy
technologies,”
according
to
the
latest
report
from
the
International
Energy
Agency
(IEA).
Despite
economic
uncertainty
and
geopolitical
tensions,
the
World
Energy
Investment
2025
report
shows
China
leads
the
way
as
the
largest
investor
in
energy.
Clean
energy
technologies
will
attract
twice
the
capital
of
fossil
fuels,
with
more
investment
being
made
in
solar
PV
than
in
any
other
technology,
the
report
said.
“Amid
the
geopolitical
and
economic
uncertainties
that
are
clouding
the
outlook
for
the
energy
world,
we
see
energy
security
coming
through
as
a
key
driver
of
the
growth
in
global
investment
this
year
to
a
record
$3.3
trillion
as
countries
and
companies
seek
to
insulate
themselves
from
a
wide
range
of
risks,”
said
Executive
Director
of
the
IEA
Fatih
Birol
in
a
press
release
from
the
intergovernmental
organization.
“The
fast-evolving
economic
and
trade
picture
means
that
some
investors
are
adopting
a
wait-and-see
approach
to
new
energy
project
approvals,
but
in
most
areas
we
have
yet
to
see
significant
implications
for
existing
projects.”
[embedded content]
Investment
in
renewables
and
other
clean
technologies
like
nuclear,
storage,
low-emissions
fuels,
electrification
and
efficiency
are
on
track
to
reach
a
record
$2.2
trillion
in
2025.
This
reflects
not
just
efforts
to
lower
emissions,
but
the
expanding
influence
of
energy
security
concerns,
industrial
policy
and
electricity-based
solutions
being
more
cost
competitive.
Investment
in
natural
gas,
oil
and
coal
is
expected
to
total
$1.1
trillion.
The
report
provides
a
comprehensive
look
at
the
global
landscape
of
current
investment
across
regions,
fuels
and
technologies.
It
also
explores
some
major
changes
that
have
happened
over
the
past
decade.
“When
the
IEA
published
the
first
ever
edition
of
its
World
Energy
Investment
report
nearly
ten
years
ago,
it
showed
energy
investment
in
China
in
2015
just
edging
ahead
of
that
of
the
United
States,”
Birol
said.
“Today,
China
is
by
far
the
largest
energy
investor
globally,
spending
twice
as
much
on
energy
as
the
European
Union
–
and
almost
as
much
as
the
EU
and
United
States
combined.”
China’s
share
of
clean
energy
spending
worldwide
has
risen
in
the
past
decade
from
one-quarter
to
nearly
a
third,
supported
by
investments
in
a
range
of
technologies,
from
solar
and
wind
to
hydropower,
nuclear,
EVs
and
batteries.
“Today’s
investment
trends
clearly
show
a
new
Age
of
Electricity
is
drawing
nearer.
A
decade
ago,
investments
in
fossil
fuels
were
30%
higher
than
those
in
electricity
generation,
grids
and
storage.
This
year,
electricity
investments
are
set
to
be
some
50%
higher
than
the
total
amount
being
spent
bringing
oil,
natural
gas
and
coal
to
market,”
IEA
said.
Spending
on
the
generation
of
low-emissions
power
globally
has
nearly
doubled
in
the
past
five
years,
with
solar
PV
leading
the
way.
Investment
in
both
rooftop
and
utility-scale
solar
is
projected
to
reach
$450
billion
this
year.
Investment
in
battery
storage
is
also
growing
rapidly,
and
is
expected
to
soar
to
more
than
$65
billion
in
2025.
However,
grid
investment,
while
now
$400
billion
annually,
is
failing
to
keep
up
with
spending
on
electrification
and
generation.
In
order
to
maintain
electricity
security,
investment
in
grids
would
need
to
climb
toward
being
equal
with
spending
on
generation
by
the
early
2030s.
But
this
is
being
hampered
by
tight
supply
chains
for
cables
and
transformers,
in
addition
to
lengthy
permitting
procedures.
According
to
the
report,
lower
demand
and
prices
for
oil
are
poised
to
result
in
a
decrease
in
upstream
oil
investment
for
the
first
time
since
2020.
“Its
short
investment
cycle
makes
US
tight
oil
the
bellwether
for
changing
market
dynamics,
with
an
anticipated
fall
of
almost
10%
in
spending
in
2025.
Nonetheless,
a
recent
wave
of
consolidation
and
technology
improvements
have
kept
costs
in
check
and
production
is
still
set
to
grow
in
2025,”
the
report
said.
Meanwhile,
liquefied
natural
gas
(LNG)
investment
is
rising,
as
new
projects
in
Qatar,
Canada,
the
United
States
and
elsewhere
are
preparing
to
come
online.
The
global
LNG
market
from
next
year
to
2028
is
set
for
its
largest
ever
surge
in
capacity.
Spending
patterns
of
nations
remain
uneven,
the
report
said,
with
many
developing
economies
—
particularly
in
Africa
—
struggling
to
raise
capital
for
energy
infrastructure.
Africa
currently
accounts
for
two
percent
of
global
investment
in
clean
energy.
“Despite
being
home
to
20%
of
the
world’s
population
and
rapidly
growing
energy
demand,
total
investment
across
the
continent
has
fallen
by
a
third
over
the
past
decade
due
to
declining
fossil
fuel
spending
and
insufficient
growth
in
clean
energy,”
the
press
release
said.
“To
close
the
financing
gap
in
African
countries
and
other
emerging
and
developing
economies,
international
public
finance
needs
to
be
scaled
up
and
used
strategically
to
bring
in
larger
volumes
of
private
capital.”
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