Spending on clean energy must ramp up – IEA

Fossil fuels still account for 43pc of energy spending, with same proportion expected for next year, the agency says

Fossil fuel investments accounted for 43pc of global energy spending in 2020, and the amount spent is expected to rise again in 2021, according to the IEA World Energy Investment Report. More than $726bn was invested in the fossil fuel industry in 2020 out of a total of $1,688bn spent within the energy industry, with the bulk of the rest ($614bn) going to renewables and electricity networks. A similar pattern is expected for 2021, with fossil fuels expected to account for 43pc of a total of $1850bn investments. “Much greater resources have to be mobilised and directed to clean energy technologies to put the world on track to reach net-zero emissions by 2050,” says the IEA’s Fatih Birol. “Bas