International Renewable Energy Agency IRENA - Reaching Zero with Renewables

IRENA 2020

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Citation

IRENA (2020), Reaching zero with renewables: Eliminating CO2 emissions from industry and transport in line with the 1.5oC climate goal, International Renewable Energy Agency, Abu Dhabi.

ISBN 978-92-9260-269-7

Available for download: www.irena.org/publications

For further information or to provide feedback, please contact IRENA at

About IRENA

The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) is an intergovernmental organisation that supports countries in their transition to a sustainable energy future, and serves as the principal platform for international co-operation, a centre of excellence, and a repository of policy, technology, resource and financial knowledge on renewable energy. IRENA promotes the widespread adoption and sustainable use of all forms of renewable energy, including bioenergy, geothermal, hydropower, ocean, solar and wind energy in the pursuit of sustainable development, energy access, energy security and low-carbon economic growth and prosperity.

Acknowledgements

IRENA appreciates the technical review provided by: Patrick Akerman (Siemens), Pierpaolo Cazzola (International Transport Forum), Emma Skov Christiansen, Rene Van Heusden, Joanna Kolomanska - van Iperen, and Kevin Soubly (World Economic Forum), Johannah Christensen (Global Maritime Forum), Kilian Crone (dena German Energy Agency), Keith Dawe (Cargill), Guillaume De Smedt (Air Liquide), Alex Keynes and Anas Laporte (FTI Consulting), Florie Gonsolin and Marko Mensink (European Chemical Industry), Charlotte Hebebrand (International Fertilizer Association), Volker Hoenig (VDZ), Chris Malins (Cerulogy), Thomas Neuenhahn and Ireneusz Pyc (Siemens Gas and Power), Andrew Purvis (World Steel Association), Deger Saygin (Shura Energy Transition Center), Carol Xiao (ISPT) and Yufeng Yang (Imperial College).

This report also benefited from valuable contributions by IRENA experts: Elisa Asmelash, Francisco Boshell, Gabriel Castellanos, Martina Lyons, Raul Miranda, Gayathri Prakash, Roland Roesch, Emanuele Taibi and Nicholas Wagner.

This report was authored by Paul Durrant, Carlos Ruiz, Padmashree Gehl Sampath, Sean Ratka, Elena Ocenic, Seungwoo Kang and Paul Komor. The study was supervised by Dolf Gielen.

Disclaimer

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The information contained herein does not necessarily represent the views of all Members of IRENA. The mention of specific companies or certain projects or products does not imply that they are endorsed or recommended by IRENA in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. The designations employed and the presentation of material herein do not imply the expression of any opinion on the part of IRENA concerning the legal status of any region, country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of frontiers or boundaries.

In planning for global emissions reductions, government attention first focused on the power sector, leaving industry, transport and other end-use sectors to be tackled later. That initial focus on electricity has proven effective. Thanks to the dramatic fall in cost of renewables and the increasing scale of their uptake, there is now a credible, cost-effective pathway towards fully decarbonising power production.

However, as the scientific understanding of climate change has deepened and as societal and political awareness has grown, the urgency of tacking all carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions has also become evident. With attention focused increasingly on the 1.5C limit, holding the line on rising global temperatures means eliminating emissions in all sectors of the economy.

Energy decarbonisation, therefore, has to move quickly beyond the power sector to fully tackle end-use emissions. This must include the most difficult, energy-intensive sectors, such as heavy industry and long-haul transport.

Low-carbon options, including electric vehicles and clean fuels based on renewables, have become familiar in many countries. But current options for some sectors are not yet sufficient. We need to start developing and proving viable solutions for those sectors immediately, in the early 2020s, and be ready to scale them up massively in the 2030 and 2040s.

To be in line with the 1.5C goal, decision makers in both the public and private sectors need a clearer view of what needs to be done. They must know what is realistic, what it could cost, and what needs to happen first.

This Reaching Zero with Renewables study brings together a wide range of knowledge about how to decarbonise the most challenging industrial and transport sectors. Encouragingly, renewables and associated energy-transition technologies offer viable options in every case. Some of those looked impossible just a few years ago. But falling technology costs and proven synergies have now opened a credible path to cut emissions to zero. Renewable energy uptake would provide at least half of the emission cuts needed in the seven toughest sectors, the analysis indicates.

The assessment builds on the Global Renewables Outlook published by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) in April 2020. Since then, the COVID-19 pandemic has engulfed the world. Yet energy and climate goals, along with the sustainable development agenda, have only gained urgency. Long-term investments in renewables, efficiency and electrification need to be at centre stage in the investment package for the transformative decarbonisation of our societies.

With the right plans and sufficient support, key transport and industry sectors can be fully decarbonised. Reaching zero is possible. Lets work together and do it.

Francesco La Camera
Director-General

Limiting the rise in average global temperatures to 1.5 degrees Celsius (oC) requires all sectors of the economy to reach zero carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions early in the second half of this century. Doing so presents significant technical and economic challenges, particularly in some highly energy-intensive sectors of industry and transport.

These challenges, however, cannot be deferred any longer. The Paris Agreement, in calling for rapid decarbonisation, has focused attention on the energy sector as a major source of global emissions. The latest studies from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) show the window of opportunity closing fast for meaningful action to counter the global climate threat.