BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 9
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
Despite the rebound in coal use, renewable energy sources and nuclear power provided a higher share of global electricity generation than coal in 2021, Trend reports with reference to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
IEA notes that renewables-based generation reached an all-time high, exceeding 8 000 TWh in 2021, a record 500 TWh above the level in 2020.
“Output from wind and solar PV increased by 270 TWh and 170 TWh, respectively, while hydro generation declined by 15 TWh due to the impacts of drought, notably in the United States and Brazil. Nuclear power output expanded by 100 TWh. Without increasing output from renewables and nuclear power, the rise in global CO2 emissions in 2021 would have been 220 Mt higher. The rise in energy-related CO2 emissions pushed overall greenhouse gas emissions from energy to their highest ever level in 2021. Total greenhouse gas emissions reached 40.8 Gt of CO2 equivalent (CO2eq) in 2021 when using a 100- year global warming potential time horizon, surpassing the previous all-time high in 2019,” reads the latest report released by IEA.
The agency estimates that CO2 emissions from energy combustion and industrial process accounted for close to 89 percent of energy sector greenhouse gas emissions in 2021. CO2 emissions from gas flaring accounted for another 0.7 percent. Beyond CO2, fugitive and combustion-related methane emissions represented almost 10 percent of the total, and combustion-related emissions of nitrous oxide 0.7 percent. Methane emissions from the energy sector rose by just under 5 percent in 2021 but remain below their 2019 level.
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