<\/p>\n
International Renewable Energy Agency Director-General Francesco La Camera said countries increasingly wanted diverse and decentralised energy systems that reduced dependence on imported fossil fuels. \u201cCountries have realised that a centralised energy system based on fossil fuels doesn\u2019t provide energy security,\u201d La Camera said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Oil and gas supplies are concentrated among relatively few producers, while shipments pass through a small number of maritime chokepoints. Disruption can therefore spread rapidly across global energy markets.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
La Camera said renewable energy offered countries greater control by allowing electricity to be generated from multiple sources across different locations.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Countries with higher renewable-energy use had generally managed the current crisis better. Spain was comparatively less affected, while almost half of road transport in Norway was electric. \u201cWe are moving towards a new energy system built primarily on renewables, complemented by the sustainable use of biomass and, above all, green hydrogen,\u201d La Camera said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
About 90% of new electricity-generating capacity added worldwide annually now comes from renewable sources. In China, solar capacity overtook coal-fired capacity for the first time at the end of July.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cThe direction of travel is no longer in question,\u201d La Camera said. \u201cThe real question is the speed and scale.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Economic competitiveness would increasingly depend on producing affordable green hydrogen, electricity and energy storage.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
La Camera said renewable energy combined with storage could provide continuous electricity throughout the year at a lower cost than gas or nuclear power.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
However, global energy demand was growing faster than previously expected, while efficiency improvements remained inadequate.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Tripling renewable capacity by 2030 might therefore be insufficient. The International Renewable Energy Agency has proposed increasing electricity\u2019s share of final energy consumption to 35% by 2035.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The transition will require interconnected and flexible electricity grids supported by artificial intelligence and digital technology.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Governments should also reform regulations and fossil-fuel subsidies while retraining workers for emerging energy industries.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Developing countries face additional constraints from high financing costs and inadequate electricity networks.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
La Camera called on multilateral financial institutions to prioritise infrastructure investment and grid modernisation.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cGrid, grid, grid, interconnectivity, flexibility and balance,\u201d La Camera said. \u201cThis is the most urgent thing to act on right now.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
–UN\/ChannelAfrica–<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":41080,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"news-type":[26],"class_list":["post-46781","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-type-general_news","entry"],"acf":{"short_description":"Renewable energy is becoming central to global energy security as conflict in the Middle East disrupts oil supplies and pushes fuel prices higher worldwide.","published_date":"","news_description":"Renewable energy is becoming central to global energy security as conflict in the Middle East disrupts oil supplies and pushes fuel prices higher worldwide.","form_embed":"","author":"","image_caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/46781","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/46781\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":46782,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/46781\/revisions\/46782"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/41080"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46781"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=46781"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}