The International Energy Agency (IEA) has today published a roadmap for reducing global carbon emissions to net zero by 2050. Increasing numbers of countries are announcing pledges to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions over the coming decades. At the same time, serious questions are being asked about whether net-zero emissions can be achieved globally by 2050 with a view to limiting global warming to 1.5 °C, and in particular what it would mean for the energy sector worldwide.
The IEA believes this underlines the need for a global pathway that explores what would need to happen to the energy sector to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. In line with an official request by the COP26 Presidency, the IEA is developing a new special report providing the first comprehensive energy-sector pathway towards global net-zero emissions by 2050. The International Energy Agency special report assesses the policy requirements, the deployment and innovation needs, the necessary investments, the economic benefits and the wider implications for the world.
The IEA special report has three main aims:
- To examine the impacts of announced net-zero emissions pledges and what they might mean for the energy sector.
- To develop a new energy-sector pathway towards achieving net-zero emissions globally by 2050. The report will provide a detailed sector-by-sector analysis of the changes that would be needed over the next 30 years, including specific technology and policy milestones, and the wider implications for economies and society.
- To set out key policy recommendations for governments to act upon in the near-term, and a long-term agenda for change to achieve net-zero goals, including with a view to reaching other Sustainable Development Goals.
The comprehensive report contains many proposals but one in particular is making today’s headlines. The proposals include a measure to ban the sale of new gas boilers by 2025. This would require a rapid move to alternative heating systems across the UK, particularly in domestic premises.