5 Key Takeaways: Statistical Review of World Energy Report

As the world grapples with the dual challenges of ongoing climate change and the transition to sustainable energy sources, the Energy Institute’s Statistical Review of World Energy offers valuable insights into global energy trends. The latest edition of the report, now in its 73rd iteration and the second under the Energy Institute, analyzes data from the previous year’s global energy markets. The report was brought out as the bp Statistical review until 2022.

The report highlights that production and consumption reached record highs across various sectors in 2023, with most markets returning to their pre-COVID 2019 long-term trends as supply chain issues eased.

Here are our 5 key takeaways from the report.

#1 Fossil Fuel Power Continues to Dominate

Total primary energy consumption grew by 2 per cent in 2023 compared to the previous year. Significantly, the demand for traditional energy sources also increased, with oil consumption surpassing 100 million barrels per day for the first time. The United States remained the leading producer, with output rising by over 8 per cent. In total, production from non-OPEC+ countries exceeded the global incremental demand growth by 20 per cent.

Regionally, North America experienced a slight increase in oil consumption of approximately 0.8 per cent, while demand in Europe dropped by nearly 1 per cent to 13.9 million barrels per day. Conversely, the Asia Pacific region saw a substantial rise of over 5 per cent to 38 million barrels per day. Even China, a key player in the renewable energy sector, witnessed a rebound in gasoline and diesel demand to 7,179 kbd, which is 15 per cent above its 2019 pre-COVID levels, due to extended zero-COVID lockdown measures.

In a similar trend, global coal production reached an all-time high of 179 EJ, surpassing the previous record set the year before. Global coal consumption also continued to climb, breaking 164 EJ for the first time.

#2 Disparity in Regional Energy Consumption and GHG Emissions

In 2023, significant geographical variations emerged in the relationship between regional population sizes and energy consumption. In Africa, South Asia, and Southern & Central America, the average energy consumption per person was 30 Gigajoules (GJ). This contrasts sharply with North America, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), and the Middle East, where per capita energy consumption averaged 180 GJ. Notably, in North America, this figure was more than double the global average of 110 GJ.

A similar disparity is observed in greenhouse gas emissions. Africa, South Asia, and Southern & Central America averaged 2 metric tons of CO2 equivalent (MtCO2e) per person, compared to the global average of 6.7 MtCO2e. In contrast, North America, the CIS, and the Middle East averaged 11.5 MtCO2e per person, nearly twice the global average. An exception to these trends was the Other Asia Pacific region, which, despite being just below the global average for energy consumption per capita, exceeded the global average for greenhouse gas emissions per person by 0.7 MtCO2e. This discrepancy is largely attributable to China, the world’s largest consumer of coal and the second-largest consumer of oil.

In aggregate, North America, Europe, and the Asia Pacific regions consumed 78 per cent of the world’s total energy in 2023.

Report also highlights that despite advances in energy technology and access, a staggering 750 million people worldwide—about 1 in 10—still lack access to electricity for basic needs such as lighting, food refrigeration, and cooling amidst rising temperatures. Additionally, around 2.6 billion people rely on heavily polluting biomass fuels like charcoal, coal, and animal waste for heating and cooking.

#3 India Still Has a Long Way to Go in Renewables

India’s heavy reliance on non-renewable and fossil fuel-based energy sources, particularly coal, indicates that the country still has a significant journey ahead before it can be considered a major renewable energy economy. In 2023, the Asia Pacific region accounted for nearly 80 per cent of global coal output, with most of this activity concentrated in four countries: Australia, China, India, and Indonesia. Interestingly, while China remained the largest consumer of coal, India’s coal consumption exceeded the combined consumption of Europe and North America for the first time. Both Europe and North America saw their coal consumption fall below 10 EJ, reaching their lowest levels since 1965.

India’s oil consumption represents a 5.4 per cent share of the global total, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.6 per cent While India’s share of global carbon emissions from natural gas is relatively low at 1.3 per cent, it is noteworthy that gas demand in the Asia Pacific region grew nearly 2 per cent.

India has an annual growth rate of 9 per cent in CO2 equivalent emissions from energy, process emissions, methane, and flaring, contributing 7.77 per cent to the global share. In comparison, China has a 31.2 per cent share, while Europe and North America together contribute roughly 25 per cent

#4 Surging Renewables

While Coal retained its position as the dominant fuel for power generation with fossil fuels, overall forming 60 per cent of global electricity generation, the share of renewables in total power generation rose from 29 per cent to 30 per cent, including Hydroelectric power. Excluding Hydroelectric power, Renewables contributed 15.9 per cent to the global share.

At a regional level, Southern & Central America recorded the highest contribution from renewables at 72 per cent The share of nuclear remained flat at around 9 per cent with a new build in China and returns to service of plant in France and Japan being offset by the closure of Germany’s remaining plant. In 2023, grid-scale battery electricity storage system (BESS) capacity stood at 56 GW, nearly 50 per cent of which was installed in China. India accounted for a 6.5 per cent share in renewable energy production registering a CAGR of 7 per cent.

Sector-wise, wind and solar continue their impressive run. In 2023, solar and wind capacity continued their rapid growth, surpassing the previous year’s record with a remarkable 67 per cent increase. Solar energy led this impressive surge, accounting for 75 per cent (346 GW) of the new capacity additions. China played a significant role in this expansion, contributing approximately a quarter of the global solar growth. Europe also made notable strides in solar energy, installing just over 56 GW, which represents 16 per cent of the total solar capacity additions for the year. The Asia-Pacific region has shown a robust growth of 38.2 per cent and contributed 61.6 per cent in global numbers for solar power.

For wind energy, the Asia-Pacific region saw an impressive 18.9 per cent growth, accounting for over half of the global wind power installations. North America contributed 16.9 per cent to the global total, while Europe accounted for 26.4 per cent.

#5 Asia Pacific’s Dominance in Critical Battery Materials

The Asia Pacific region was responsible for nearly 70 per cent of the metals and materials essential for manufacturing Li-ion batteries in 2023, reports Statistical Review of World Energy. China, in particular, stood out as the world’s leading producer and consumer of refined cobalt, with nearly 87 per cent of its consumption directed towards the lithium-ion battery industry. In addition to producing almost 20 per cent of the world’s lithium, China also supplies about 74 per cent of the global graphite demand.

While copper production has grown at an average rate of just under 2 per cent over the past decade (with a 1.6 per cent decline in 2023), the production of other minerals crucial to the global energy system has continued to expand at an average rate of around 4 per cent per year. With countries like Indonesia also key players in Nickel demand, Asia’s role is expected to keep expanding.

In Europe, Portugal holds the largest lithium reserve, estimated at around 60,000 metric tons. Historically focused on ceramics for glassware production, Portugal is now increasingly looking to enter the lithium battery market.