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Mitigating climate change will require profound changes in world energy production and use. While the full effects of climate change are not likely to be felt for decades, the need for action is more immediate, for changes in greenhouse gas concentrations are almost irreversible. Solutions exist in the form of energy efficiency improvements, fuel switching to non-carbon sources, and carbon recovery and storage. But the long-term costs of mitigation and the precise extent and pace of climate damage remain uncertain. So policy-makers face the task of conceiving and implementing measures in a context of uncertainty – and global inequity -, and run the risk of taking either excessive or insufficient action.

This volume details the options available in the energy sector to reduce climate change. It explores the type of international agreement that could cope with the uncertainty inherent in implementing a climate program at the national and international level. It identifies mechanisms to deal with both international equity and economic uncertainty, and addresses the fundamental question: how can we proceed beyond Kyoto?

Biofuels received USD 15 billion in subsidies in OECD Member countries in 2007, but did they deliver benefits in terms of climate change or oil security? Present policies make no link between support for biofuels and their environmental performance, and biofuels do not all perform equally well. In fact, much of the current ethanol and biodiesel production may result in higher overall emissions of greenhouse gases than using conventional transport fuels - gasoline and diesel. The papers published in this report examine the economics of biofuels and assess the potential of conventional biofuel production in OECD countries, Brazilian ethanol exports and some second generation biofuels to supply world markets with transport fuels.

This Round Table analyses the critical issues for governments in determining support for biofuels, particularly the level of greenhouse gas emissions throughout the life-cycle of these fuels and the wider environmental impacts of farming biomass. It also reviews recent progress in developing certification systems for biofuels – an essential  tool for tying support  to achievement in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, although certification cannot be expected to prevent rainforest destruction for the  development of  biofuel crop plantations. The report concludes with a short list of recommendations for policy reform if support for biofuels is to contribute effectively to mitigating greenhouse gas emissions.

Countries around the world are facing an energy security and affordability crisis affecting households, businesses and public budgets. In Latin America, household expenditure on energy services is second only to food. On average, the share of household budget for energy ranges between 7% and 9% of income – and up to more than 24% for the poorest households. As governments urgently implement measures to protect citizens and secure their economies, it is important to consider short- and long- term solutions to ease existing pain and reduce risks over time. While much attention focuses on securing energy supplies, it is equally important to take a hard look at the role of more efficient and flexible demand in securing affordable, reliable energy.Decades of policies and programmes have delivered energy savings around the world. As a result, energy systems are more resilient, bills are lower, and public budgets feel less pressure than they would have without these efforts.

This report looks at energy efficiency and demand management policies and programmes across Latin America. It presents evidence of the results of these efforts on improving living standards, public budgets, energy security and employment, and provides a view on the opportunities to expand these benefits and support just energy transitions.

Lack of energy access and frequent electricity shortages are major impediments to economic growth in sub-Saharan Africa. Over 635 million people live without electricity in the region. Because the overall electrification rate remains at less than one-third of the population, the region needs increased investment in the power sector.

As part of their increasing activity in overseas markets, companies from the People’s Republic of China have significantly enhanced their engagement in Africa in the last 15 years, covering a wide range of sectors, including the electricity industry. Chinese-built projects and financial support from China are contributing to power sector development, extending energy access and facilitating economic growth.

This report analyses China’s engagement in the sub-Saharan Africa power sector, including the key drivers underlying Chinese investments. An overview of Chinese projects (generation, transmission and distribution) during the 2010-20 period is provided in this first-ever consolidated effort to map them.

The report identifies the key Chinese stakeholders and assesses their impact on policies affecting energy access, economic development and financing modalities. Two case studies examine Chinese investment at the country level in Ghana and Ethiopia.

The Breakthrough Agenda Report 2023 is an annual collaboration between the International Energy Agency (IEA), the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and the United Nations Climate Change High-Level Champions, focused on supporting stronger international collaboration to drive faster reductions in global greenhouse gas emissions. This year’s report shows that current efforts on clean energy and sustainable solutions, while improving, are not yet delivering the levels of investment and deployment required to meet international climate goals. In response, it calls on governments to strengthen collaboration in key areas – such as standards and regulation, financial and technical assistance and market creation – to turbocharge the transition.

The second annual report assesses progress made since 2022 in priority areas for international collaboration, and sets out a series of recommendations for countries to work together in each sector to help reduce emissions over the next decade and stave off the worst effects of climate change. The report shows how the transition to clean energy and sustainable solutions is accelerating across many sectors, with unprecedented expansion in technologies such as electric vehicles and solar PV. It highlights that electric passenger cars are set to account for 18% of total car sales in 2023, while investment in clean energy technologies is significantly outpacing spending on fossil fuels. But other high emissions and hard-to-abate sectors such as steel, hydrogen and agriculture are not transitioning quickly enough despite encouraging progress in some areas.

The report found that in the past year, only modest progress has been made in strengthening international collaboration in the areas where it is most needed. Progress has been made in expanding financial assistance to developing countries in some sectors, and in joint research and development initiatives. But much more progress is needed in aligning policies to create demand for clean technologies, and in establishing dialogue on trade in sectors where this is likely to be critical to the transition. In most sectors, participation in the leading initiatives for practical cooperation still falls short of a majority of the global market. The report argues that greater political commitment is needed to progress from softer forms of collaboration, such as sharing best practice, to harder forms such as alignment of standards and policies, which are more difficult but can yield greater gains in mobilising investment and accelerating deployment.

Power markets are an instrument used globally to ensure electricity security while maintaining affordability and incentivising decarbonisation. The People’s Republic of China (hereafter, “China”) has been making big steps towards implementing markets, and the goals announced in 2020 of carbon dioxide emissions peaking before 2030 and carbon neutrality before 2060 have added momentum to expand their footprint. Provinces have taken a leading role in designing and implementing markets. To improve sharing of resources, the guidance to implement a unified national market system pushes for more co-ordination between provinces.

This report examines the role of power markets in China and the pathways to develop a national market. The analysis focuses on short-term markets because they have the potential to unlock flexibility the system needs in light of renewables growth and changing weather patterns. The report provides recommendations to improve markets’ co-ordination across the country as well as within the provinces.

Cities around the world face enormous problems of transport sustainability. Rapidly increasing populations and vehicle usage have created gridlock and sprawl, even in very poor cities, as well as unacceptably high levels of air pollution, noise, and accident rates. But improvements can be made. This book explores how the provision of better bus services can bring concrete solutions. "Bus rapid transit" systems emerging in Latin America provide fast, reliable and efficient urban travel for large numbers of people. Express busways, employing high-capacity buses and new technologies such as GPS-based bus tracking systems, can conveniently and reliably move up to 10 times as many people along a route as can cars – and be profitable.

This book shows how bus rapid transit differs from traditional bus systems and how it can be developed around the world. There is a detailed look at clean fuels and advanced technologies such as "clean diesel", CNG, hybrid-electric and fuel cells. Case studies are made of six cities and of the steps each might take to encourage more sustainable transport systems.