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Newsletter (copy 57)
In numbers: Highlights from the energy transition in 2024 ⚡
Hi,
Happy new year to all our readers. We just experienced the hottest 12 months in 120,000 years, which is all the more reason to focus on proven sustainable development solutions and pockets of real progress. This week, we’re looking at a handful of countries that made significant progress in the transition to clean electricity in 2024.
But first, here’s some good news to start the day:
China’s biggest oil refiner says the country’s gasoline demand peaked last year and declines will accelerate as the shift to electric vehicles gathers pace, per a Bloomberg report.
Departing US President Joe Biden has permanently banned new offshore oil and gas drilling along large swathes of America's coastline.
In 2024, $272 billion was invested in green technology manufacturing and deployment in the US, up 24% from the previous year, says Rhodium Group.
Congestion pricing has finally been implemented in New York City to tackle traffic jams and pollution and raise billions for public transport investments.
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Thanks for reading.
Nick Hedley
Editor, The Progress Playbook
Domestic power plants that run on fossil fuels covered just 10% of Portugal’s electricity consumption in 2024 — a new record low in a country that’s fast established itself as a frontrunner in the global energy transition.
- Read the full story here.
Greenhouse gas emissions from power generation in the European Union fell sharply again in 2024 amid an ongoing shift towards renewable technologies, according to data from the bloc’s industry association.
Emissions were down 13% from a year before, and were 59% lower than 1990 levels, Eurelectric said in a statement.
Renewables made up 48% of the EU’s power generation mix in 2024, up from 45%, while nuclear contributed 24%, a 1 percentage point increase. Fossil fuels comprised just 28% of the total – the lowest share ever.
- Read the full story here.
Wind overtook gas as the UK’s largest source of electricity in 2024 as the country moved closer to its goal of nearly eliminating fossil fuels from its power mix by the end of the decade.
- Read the full story here.
Ad: GoSolr offers solar subscription plans in South Africa from only R1,399 per month.
Despite headwinds, from geopolitical tensions to economic constraints, the energy transition is gathering pace, research group Ember writes in this analysis.
- Read the full story here.
It takes approximately 700,000 megawatt hours of electricity to power Chicago’s more than 400 municipal buildings every year. As of January 1, every single one of them — including 98 fire stations, two international airports, and two of the largest water treatment plants on the planet — is running on renewable energy, thanks largely to Illinois’ newest and largest solar farm.
- Read the full story here.
The share of renewable energy in net public electricity generation in Germany in 2024 reached a record high of 63.7%, with solar power smashing government expansion targets and coal use continuing to drop sharply, according to data from Fraunhofer ISE.
- Read the full story here.
Other articles you might find interesting:
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