The News
Clean energy provided more than 40% of global electricity in 2024, a record.
Solar’s rapid growth drove the increase — it accounts for 7% of the world’s power — although it was still dwarfed in overall contribution by hydropower, at 14%. Nuclear, wind, and bioenergy account for most of the rest.
Research by the think tank Ember suggested that clean power’s expansion will outpace growth in electricity demand. That ought to mean fossil fuels being squeezed out, but the US may buck that trend: President Donald Trump yesterday signed four executive orders intended to boost the country’s coal industry, allowing older plants to remain open to meet growing demand being driven by data centers.
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