Energy Transitions Commission

We have just published our latest briefing note: NDCs, NCQG, and Financing the Transition: Unlocking Flows for a Net-Zero Future.    “Climate finance“ will be a key subject at COP29, with debate in particular on the proposed “New Collective Quantified Goal“ (NCQG) for financial flows from high-income to low-income countries. But the term “climate finance“ is often used vaguely and broadly, covering several different challenges and priorities.    The ETC’s latest briefing note clarifies the nature and scale of different types of finance required, proposes four principles to ensure a useful conclusion of the NCQG debate and explains the vital role that updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) can and must play in unleashing financial flows.    Download the full analysis:  https://lnkd.in/eY4ANWeR

At the beginning of 2024, the ETC released a series of factsheets that took major ETC reports and adapted the key messages to the context of the energy transition in Europe. Covering the phase down fossil fuels, carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS), financing the transition, and energy security, these factsheets brought a facts-based perspective to the current EU debates around energy. More recently, we published a policy whitepaper to continue informing the conversation on how to ensure the EU’s climate leadership with a new European Commission in office. This paper explains why now is a crucial moment to reaffirm Europe’s commitment to net-zero, while addressing the evolving concerns of its citizens and industries. See our recommendations for the Commission’s 5-year agenda below 👇 Download the analysis: https://lnkd.in/eSQtwVqy

In June, #Mission2025, a global coalition was launched at London Climate Action Week to boost government climate plans ahead of the critical February 2025 deadline, when countries are required to submit enhanced climate plans (known as Nationally Determined Contributions) to the United Nations for the period 2025-2035. Mission 2025 responded to our analysis, showing that rapidly falling costs of clean technologies and proven feasibility of other solutions mean that countries can collectively almost triple ambition – and bring the world on a 2°C pathway – merely by factoring in the commitments made and progress achieved since previous plans were submitted in 2021. #LCAW was just the beginning as the ETC along with Mission 2025 + partners made noise at key events throughout this year including #ClimateWeekNYC and #COP29. At Climate Week NYC we called for key policies to unlock $1 trillion in investment by 2030, paving the way for a cleaner, more resilient future. Following this, in Baku we urged governments to ramp up climate finance for developing nations and provide clarity on the NCQG using analysis from our briefing note released pre-COP, NDCs, NCQG and Financing the Transition. Groundswell Global Optimism Systems Change Lab Bezos Earth Fund Matthew Phillips Freya Newman Fiona Macklin Michael Seckler Take a look back at the coalition's launch by listening to an episode of Outrage + Optimism featuring ETC Chair Adair Turner: https://lnkd.in/ebUuN7A9  

“I still think we have a chance of limiting global warming to well below 2°C.” ETC Chair Adair Turner on the path to a net-zero carbon economy in an interview with Martin Wolf Financial Times earlier this year as part of the “Economists Exchange” series. As we look onwards to accelerating the energy transition in 2025, read the full article for what will tip the dial: https://lnkd.in/eGkHAY6T

COP29 discussions highlighted the Global Energy Storage and Grids Pledge which aims to significantly enhance global energy storage capacity and modernise grid infrastructure to support the rapid expansion of renewable energy sources. Policymakers and industry players should transform pledges into action by accelerating the build of new grids to deliver clean electrification at the pace and scale required. To do this, policymakers and industry must act across four critical areas. They should: 1. Implement a strategic vision for grids and generation coordinated across key stakeholders and supported by clear data.  2. Address slow permitting and approvals, and grow societal acceptance.  3. Address skill, component and material gaps.  4. Reform financing structures and increase access to finance. Read the full analysis: https://lnkd.in/ezmCwnbh

Looking for something to listen to as the year winds down? 🎧 Catch up on this episode of 🎙Redefining Energy: “Resilience or Irrelevance?” Ahead of this year’s COP29, ETC Chair Adair Turner discussed an overview of the climate negotiations with Gerard Reid and Laurent Segalen Get the context behind what shaped the events of COP29 — catch this insightful episode for key highlights and background: https://lnkd.in/eqrb9xiq

Earlier this year, the ETC published our Insights Briefing, Overcoming Turbulence in the Offshore Wind Sector, highlighting the need for governments and the offshore wind industry to join forces and restore confidence in the market, drive down costs and accelerate the clean energy transition. The briefing reinforced #offshorewind’s crucial role for the clean energy transition. The renewable energy source can generate electricity when the sun isn't shining and doesn't compete for land use. International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates suggest offshore wind has the potential to generate more than 420,000 TWh per year worldwide, 14 times todays global electricity generation. However, most countries are not on track to install sufficient offshore wind capacity by 2030 to align with a net-zero emission trajectory. Now is a critical period to rapidly accelerate wind capacity if the world is to achieve net-zero emissions by mid-century. Watch ETC Chair Adair Turner explain the significance of offshore wind to global decarbonisation efforts: https://lnkd.in/e8Q5nD3X Read the full Insights Briefing on the sector here: https://lnkd.in/e4UettAy

In April, ETC Director Ita Kettleborough took the stage at the Ambição 2030 Forum in Brazil, hosted by United Nations Global Compact and AYA Earth Partners. The two-day event was rich with discussions on achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, featuring panels on sustainable food systems, circular economy, urban mobility, regenerative cities, and the energy transition. Ita shared insights on shaping Brazil’s energy transition and the ETC’s global mid-century vision—centered on an affordable, wind- and solar-dominated electricity system capable of near-total decarbonisation, even in heavy industry. With Brazil set to host COP30 in 2025, its energy outlook takes on even greater significance. The country’s transition highlights the significant role of biomass, alongside net-zero projections that depend on negative emissions from its AFOLU sector. While biofuels are widely embraced as a key pathway, Brazil’s abundant solar and wind resources offer immense potential to accelerate its transition. More recently, Brazil updated its NDCs, committing to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions by 59–67% before 2035 (compared to 2005 levels)—a step forward on its climate journey. As the host of COP30, Brazil can showcase its leadership by translating ambition into action and leveraging its vast renewable energy potential to lead the way toward a net-zero future. 

This year the ETC released a six-part video series on how to reach net-zero by mid-century via massive, clean electrification, representing the cheapest and most efficient way to decarbonise the global economy.  We have identified six critical actions for the 2020s that will enable that necessary scale up in electricity deployment: -Clear and binding targets  -Incentives for clean electrification  -Building the infrastructure and skills required   -Appropriate planning & permitting  -Unlocking financial flows  -Developing technology and business models The first action is for countries to set clear, quantitative targets aimed at electrifying their economies (e.g., electric vehicle sales) and decarbonisation of their power systems (e.g., wind and solar capacity). This should also include targets for the phase-out of fossil technologies (e.g., bans on internal combustion engine vehicles). 📺 Watch here: https://lnkd.in/eSa-wj2u

With a new European Commission and the next legislative term taking us to 2030, now is the time for Member States to play a key role in ensuring EU law is implemented and to focus on policy areas that are lagging due to political or technical complexity.  Although policies like the EU ETS, REPowerEU, and Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) have driven significant progress, challenges remain in securing necessary funding, managing supply chains, and phasing out fossil fuels. The ETC therefore offers the following recommendations to shape the next five-year agenda of the European Commission. 1. Hold the ground: Avoid reversing previously policies to send clear market signals that will encourage investment and maintain momentum around the energy transition. 2. Complete the picture: Expand policy focus to areas beyond the power sector to ensure emissions reductions is achieved across all sectors. 3. Realise competitive advantage: Align industrial policy with environmental goals to ensure European companies can compete in the global marketplace.   Read more: https://lnkd.in/gH-AD4QX