IEA to address world leaders on energy and climate challenges at G7 Summit in Hiroshima

Next weekend, the G7 Summit in Hiroshima, Japan, will bring together global leaders at a crucial moment for international efforts to strengthen energy security and tackle climate change amid complex geopolitical challenges.

Our Executive Director, Fatih Birol, will be speaking at the G7 Summit on these issues alongside the leaders of Canada, the European Union, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United States and the United Kingdom – as well as those of Australia, Brazil, Comoros, the Cook Islands, India, Indonesia, Korea and Vietnam, who have been invited to the Summit.

The IEA has already contributed to the G7’s energy and climate agenda across a range of key areas, including critical minerals, clean energy technology manufacturing, renewables, energy efficiency, hydrogen, natural gas markets and more. This week, ahead of the Hiroshima Summit, we will be publishing an update on the state of play with global clean technology manufacturing, building on the agenda-setting analysis of our Energy Technology Perspectives 2023.

Read more about our contributions to Japan’s G7 Presidency this year and keep an eye on Dr Birol’s Twitter and LinkedIn accounts for updates on our involvement in the Hiroshima Summit this coming weekend.

Critical minerals are a key element of the new energy economy, and their role will only grow as the transition to clean energy technologies accelerates. That why we’re holding the first ever IEA Critical Minerals and Clean Energy Summit on 28 September in Paris, taking the lead responsibility on this rapidly emerging area of energy security for the 21st century.

The Summit will bring together ministers from countries in the IEA family and beyond – including both large mineral producers and consumers – as well as business leaders, investors, heads of international organisations and civil society representatives.

Among those who have already confirmed their participation or indicated they plan to attend are ministers from Belgium, Canada, Chile, Hungary, Indonesia, Japan, Morocco and Poland; the African Union Commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy and the European Commissioner for the Internal Market; and the CEOs of BHP, Glencore, London Metal Exchange and Umicore. Participants will share their experiences, identify challenges around critical mineral supplies, and discuss an effective course of action to ensure rapid and secure energy transitions.

The convening of the Summit comes after we were given a Ministerial mandate by our member governments last year to deepen our work on critical minerals and asked by G7 Climate, Energy and Environment Ministers last month to provide further support on the topic.

Read more on the Summit and our work on critical minerals – and watch this new video with our Chief Energy Economist Tim Gould explaining the key issues.

Taking oil and gas out of the ground, processing it, and delivering it to consumers accounts for almost 15% of global energy-related emissions – more than all the emissions produced by the United States or twice the emissions of the entire European Union. Our latest report, Emissions from Oil and Gas Operations in Net Zero Transitions, shows how the oil and gas industry can slash these emissions by 60% between now and 2030, using just a fraction of the windfall income accrued from record energy prices in 2022.

In a new commentary, our Executive Director highlights that this year’s COP28 Climate Change Conference in the United Arab Emirates, a major oil and gas producer, is a unique opportunity for the industry to demonstrate a real commitment to cutting emissions.

Our report identifies five key levers to achieve this reduction: tackling methane emissions; eliminating all non-emergency flaring; electrifying upstream facilities with low-emissions electricity; equipping oil and gas processes with carbon capture, utilisation and storage; and expanding the use of low-emissions hydrogen in refineries.

Read Dr Birol’s commentary and our news article on the report, and explore the full report. We’ll also be publishing a broader special report ahead of COP28 that will help map out a path for oil and gas producers in the transition to net zero emissions.

Global gas supply are expected to remain tight for the rest of 2023 as new volumes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) are unlikely to be enough to offset further reductions in Russia’s pipeline gas deliveries to Europe, according to our latest quarterly Gas Market Report.

Favourable weather conditions and timely policy actions eased the pressure on European and global gas markets at the beginning of this year. While this provides grounds for optimism on gas supply security, major uncertainties still remain. The level of Russian pipeline gas supplies is a big question mark. Other risk factors include unusual weather such as a very hot summer or cold winter.

China is expected to gradually recover its appetite for LNG, although imports are set to remain below their 2021 levels as the country continues its re-opening following a long period of Covid restrictions. Notably, the United States is expected to become the world’s largest exporter of LNG this year, accounting for over half of the global supply increase.

Read the full report.

We hosted high-level officials from the International Energy Forum (IEF) and Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) at our headquarters in Paris last week to discuss the outlook for natural gas and coal markets worldwide, including long-term decarbonisation strategies and the implications for energy security.

The 6th IEA-IEF-OPEC Symposium on Gas and Coal Market Outlooks is part of the ongoing cooperation between the three organisations. It brought together more than 80 representatives from the energy industry, international institutions and academia. The Symposium takes place every two years and is hosted by the IEA, based on a mandate from G20 leaders.

Read our news article about the event.

Electricity demand in the European Union fell by 3% in 2022 – the only major electricity-consuming region to experience such a significant decline.

Our new commentary explores what the main drivers were behind this decline and assesses how changes in weather patterns, economic activity and price swings influenced demand across countries in the European Union. While the mild weather was a factor in the overall decline in electricity demand across the European Union, the hotter summer weather partially offset this, especially in Southern Europe as heatwaves gripped the region, prompting households and offices turned on their air conditioners to keep cool. France, Italy and Spain saw prolonged periods of record temperatures.

Soaring wholesale electricity prices in 2022 meant that the cost of electricity for consumers rose substantially towards the end of the year. Many energy-intensive industries – such as chemicals, aluminium and steel production – further reduced their output in the second half of 2022.

Read the commentary.

Direct air capture, a technology that removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, is expected to play a role in global efforts to reach net zero emissions. In a new commentary, our analysts examine the policy tools that could scale up the technology, including tax credits, public procurement, reverse auctions, advanced market commitments, loans and loan guarantees, and support to enable transport and storage infrastructure. Read the commentary.

The number of smart power meters worldwide exceeded 1 billion last year, a 10-fold increase since 2010. Meanwhile, connected devices with automated controls and sensors are expected to reach 13 billion in 2023, up from less than a billion a decade ago. All these devices generate data: smart meters collect details on consumption, while sensors transmit real-time data from grids. Our new commentary explores how good management of energy data can be beneficial for power systems.

A people-centred and just transition is essential part of achieving net zero emissions, including working with emerging and developing economies to ensure that the most vulnerable populations are supported properly. Dr Birol met with Kenya’s Energy Minister David Chirchir earlier this month to discuss how the IEA can support Kenya to ensure that modern energy services including access to electricity and clean cooking technologies are available to all citizens.

Dr Birol hosted Eamon Ryan, Ireland’s Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications and Co-Chair of the 2024 IEA Ministerial Meeting, at our headquarters in Paris last week for discussions on a range of topics including energy security, renewables and plans for the Ministerial.

A delegation of Members of the European Parliament visited our headquarters in Paris on Friday for a discussion with IEA leaders, chaired by our Head of Energy Efficiency Brian Motherway, on a wide range of energy and climate topics. The delegation were part of the EUFORES group – the European Forum for Renewable Energy Sources – led by EUFORES President Ciarán Cuffe and Vice President Niels Fulsgang. Dr Birol made opening remarks about recent energy sector trends, highlighting the rapid emergence of the new energy economy, the importance of supply chain security and the need to strengthen Europe’s clean energy technology manufacturing. The meeting provided a further opportunity to build close ties between IEA experts and key EU policy makers.