How Feasible Is It to Achieve Climate Change Targets in the Short-Term?

Achieving the key renewable energy targets agreed upon at last year’s global climate summit in Dubai will remain an elusive dream unless the world invests more than $30 trillion over the next six years.

According to Politico, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) issued this stark warning in October at the final ministerial meeting ahead of the UN climate summit COP29, where financing climate action will take center stage.

At last year’s COP28 conference in Dubai, countries committed to collectively triple the global renewable energy capacity and double efforts on energy efficiency by 2030. These commitments were seen as crucial for limiting global warming in line with the Paris Agreement.

The agency found that countries are on track to achieve only half of the renewable energy growth needed to meet the target.

According to IRENA, stricter policies, streamlined permitting processes, and grid modernization are crucial for closing the gap, as well as a sharp increase in investments.

Investments in renewable energy reached a record $570 billion last year, but $1.5 trillion per year is required, says IRENA. Additionally, spending on energy efficiency measures needs to increase sevenfold to meet the doubling target, from $323 million last year to $2.2 trillion annually.

Overall, IRENA states that achieving both COP28 goals will require a total of $31.5 trillion in global investments in renewable energy, grids, energy efficiency, and related measures by 2030.