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Global energy investment to hit new record - IEA
Worldwide Finance
The International Energy Agency has released the latest edition of its annual ‘World Energy Investment’, which provides key insights on the latest investment trends across the global energy landscape.
The report finds that global energy investment is set to increase in 2025 to a record $3.3 trillion despite headwinds from elevated geopolitical tensions and economic uncertainty. Investment in clean energy technologies – renewables, nuclear, grids, storage, low-emissions fuels, efficiency and electrification – is on course to hit $2.2 trillion this year, reflecting not only efforts to reduce emissions but also the growing influence of industrial policy, energy security concerns and the cost competitiveness of electricity-based solutions. Investment in oil, natural gas and coal is set to reach $1.1 billion.
“The fast-evolving economic and trade picture means that some investors are adopting a wait-and-see approach to new energy project approvals, but in most areas we have yet to see significant implications for existing projects,” notes IEA executive director Fatih Birol .
Major changes
This 10th edition of the report explores some of the major changes over the past decade. Key takeaways:
Today, China is by far the world’s largest overall energy investor, spending twice as much on energy as the European Union – and almost as much as the EU and United States combined.
Over the past decade, China’s share of global clean energy spending has risen from a quarter to almost a third, underpinned by strategic investments in a wide range of technologies, including solar, wind,
Billion USD (2024, MER) 0 China
United States European Union Middle East Latin America India Africa
Southeast Asia Estimated global energy investment in 2025. Source – IEA
hydropower, nuclear, batteries and EVs. Today’s investment trends clearly show a new Age of Electricity is drawing nearer. A decade ago, investments in fossil fuels were 30% higher than those in electricity generation, grids and storage. This year, electricity investments are set to be some 50% higher than the total amount being spent bringing oil, natural gas and coal to market.
Globally, spending on low-emissions power generation has almost doubled over the past five years, led by solar PV. Battery storage investments are also climbing rapidly, to more than $65 billion this year. Capital flows to nuclear power have grown by 50% over the past five years and are on course to reach around $75 billion in 2025.
Worrying signs
Rapid growth in electricity demand is underpinning continued investment in coal
supply, mainly in China and India. China has started construction on nearly 100 GW of new coal-fired power plants, pushing global approvals of coal-fired plants to their highest level since 2015.
A worrying sign for electricity security is that investment in grids, now at $400 billion per year, is failing to keep pace with overall spending on generation and electrification. Lower oil prices and demand expectations are set to result in the first year-on-year fall in upstream oil investment since the Covid slump in 2020. By contrast, investment in new LNG facilities is on a strong upward trajectory. Energy spending patterns remain very uneven globally, with many developing economies, especially in Africa, struggling to mobilise capital for energy infrastructure. Today, Africa accounts for just 2% of global clean energy investment, despite being home to 20% of the world’s population and rapidly growing energy demand.
300 600 900
Oil, natural gas and coal Renewables Nuclear
Grids and storage Energy efficiency & electrification
Empire Wind project resumes construction USA Wind power
The US Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has informed Equinor that the stop work order for the Empire Wind project has been lifted. Anders Opedal, Equinor’s president and CEO, said: “I would like to thank president Trump for finding a solution that … provides for continued investments in energy infrastructure in the US. I am grateful to governor Hochul for her constructive collaboration with the Trump administration, without which we would not have been able to advance this project …”. He also thanked Norwegian prime minister Støre
4 | June 2025 |
www.modernpowersystems.com
and minister of Finance Stoltenberg for their support in raising the issue with the US administration.
“This project delivers on the energy ambitions shared by the United States and New York by providing a vital new source of power to the region. Empire Wind brings supply chain investments in states across the nation including New York, Louisiana, Pennsylvania, Texas and South Carolina,” said Molly Morris, president of Equinor Wind US. Equinor will perform an updated assessment of the project economics in the second quarter. Empire Offshore Wind aims to be able
to execute planned activities in the offshore installation window in 2025 and reach its planned commercial operation date in 2027, and will engage with suppliers and regulatory bodies to reduce the impact of the stop work order.
After a competitive process, the US government first leased Empire a designated area of the outer continental shelf off the coast of New York in 2017. Following an environmental review, the government gave its approval and construction started. Project financing was secured in 2024. The project is currently more than 30 % complete.
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