Renewable growth must more than double to meet 2030 pledge, report finds
A new report says global renewable capacity must grow by about 1,200 GW a year through 2030 to meet the COP28 tripling pledge, with grid investment and efficiency also lagging.
Global additions of renewable power capacity reached a record last year, but the pace remains far short of what is needed to meet a pledge made at the COP28 climate summit, a report by renewable groups has found.
More than 100 countries agreed in Dubai in 2023 to triple renewable energy capacity by 2030. According to the report, compiled by the International Renewable Energy Agency, the COP31 Presidency and the Global Renewables Alliance, the world added just over 690 gigawatts of renewable capacity in 2025.
To meet the tripling goal, installations must accelerate to roughly 1,200 GW on average every year through 2030. Total installed renewable capacity stood at 5.15 terawatts at the end of 2025 — less than half the 11.2 TW target required under the pledge.
The report also flagged shortfalls in energy efficiency. Energy intensity improved by about 2% in 2025, below the 4% annual rate needed to meet commitments on doubling efficiency.
"Renewables can still close the gap towards 2030, but energy efficiency is falling behind, electricity demand is rising faster than expected, and the grid infrastructure has failed to keep pace," Francesco La Camera, director-general of the International Renewable Energy Agency, said in the report.
Grid investment is a key constraint. The report estimated that nearly $1 trillion a year on average will be needed between 2026 and 2030, up from $525 billion in 2025.
Ben Backwell, chair of the Global Renewables Alliance, said governments needed to "make renewables a national economic priority," including by expanding grids, deploying storage and electrifying homes, transport and industry.
This year's COP climate talks, to be held in Turkey in November, are expected to focus on using electricity to power more sectors and to push for a new target of electricity meeting 35% of global final energy consumption by 2035.