RELEASE: Are governments letting another energy crisis go to waste?

Despite being in the midst of the third major energy shock this decade, governments’ immediate reactions are still largely failing to take action consistent with a global energy transition, despite the recent and exponential rise of renewables and electrification, the Climate Action Tracker said today. 

In a briefing released at the Bonn climate talks, the CAT sets out responses to an energy shock that would support - or hinder decarbonisation, noting it is still in the hands of governments to use the momentum of the crisis to initiate structural changes.

Read the full briefing

The first two energy crises since 2020 (the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war) governments simultaneously supporting renewables and fossil fuels, which largely cancelled each other out: they stabilised emissions but failed to deliver net structural progress, with many doubling down on fossil fuels. 

"The current energy crisis is unfolding under markedly different conditions, where clean energy technologies have matured and are cost competitive, electrification is accelerating, and renewables are scaling at exponential rates, while fossil fuel expansion is expensive, insecure and constrained," said Dr Niklas Höhne from CAT partner organisation NewClimate Institute. 

The CAT has looked at the response to the Iran energy shock through the lens of the 40 countries it analyses, and found a very mixed picture in terms of reactions that would lead to, or undermine  decarbonisation.

The CAT warned that with both the COVID and Ukraine crises, governments continue to double down on fossil gas, wrongly claiming it is a transition fuel. The Iran crisis has once again pushed LNG prices higher and highlighted the vulnerability of gas-dependent economies, adding to concerns already emerging before the crisis. This leads some governments, particularly in Asia, to start re-evaluating the role of LNG in their energy strategies, for example Viet Nam and the Philippines.

"It is still in the hands of governments: In their reactions to the crisis, they can either entrench fossil fuel lock-ins through short term relief, or tip the system toward a cleaner more resilient future: unfortunately. Arguments for a cleaner, more secure and reliable energy system based on renewables and electrification have never been better," said Höhne. 

CEO of Climate Analytics Bill Hare pointed out the answer to the energy crisis lies in implementing decisions taken at COP28 under the first Global Stocktake (GST-1).

"Tripling renewable energy, doubling energy efficiency and cutting methane, as governments agreed to do in 2024, would provide the strongest available framework for aligning immediate crisis responses with long term energy security," said Hare. 

"We need to see momentum this year where governments begin implementing a roadmap to transition away from fossil fuels, which would help meet their Global Stocktake commitments, deal with the energy shock, and address the climate crisis."

The Climate Action Tracker will continue to evaluate government reactions to the energy crisis and the impact on national and global greenhouse gas emissions.

Read the full briefing

Watch the press conference