World November 18, 2016 | 10:22 am

IEA’s World Energy Outlook 2016 – Greenpeace response

Hong Kong, 15 November 2016 – TheInternational Energy Agency’s (IEA) report World Energy Outlook 2016 outlinesthe world’s future energy mix, but refuses to take full account of thebreakthrough of renewable energy taking place across the world.

“The IEA now admits it has longunderestimated renewable energy, but astonishingly little has changed about itsprojections. The agency claims the amount of wind power installed each yearwill fall and solar installations will almost stop growing after 2020, which isabsurd. Given that solar in India, for instance, has already become cheaperthan coal, renewable growth will continue to disrupt the fossil fuel industrymuch more profoundly than the IEA suggests,” said Harri Lammi, Senior Coal Campaignerat Greenpeace East Asia.

“The IEA confirms that coal is a threat tothe air we breathe and the water we drink, yet the agency claims that coal istoo cheap for developing countries like India to give up. This doesn’t factorin the public health costs from reduced air quality and water resources – coststhat are too frequently borne by the poorest people.”

The report highlights the dramatic impacts ofpower generation on water, with coal-fired power plants in particular consumingvast amounts of precious freshwater. However, expensive and water-wastingcarbon capture and storage (CCS) and nuclear power are given an outsized rolein the IEA’s energy scenarios.

“In a world where climate extremes anddroughts are becoming more common, governments across the world need to haltall new fossil fuel projects, and urgently shift investment to water efficientwind and solar power,” said Lammi.

“Instead of focusing on accelerating the mostwater efficient technologies such as solar PV and wind, the IEA still insistson increasing investment into water intensive coal and natural gas, carbon capture and storage, and nuclearpower. Governments deserve better future energy roadmaps than this.”

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