Energy security crisis marks ‘big boost’ to renewables, says IEA Chief

International Energy Agency’s (IEA) Executive Director Fatih Birol

The current energy-security crisis, sparked by the Russia-Ukraine conflict, is now the biggest driving force behind the growth of renewable energy overtaking the desire to reduce emissions, International Energy Agency’s (IEA) Executive Director Fatih Birol said.

Addressing a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos today, Jan. 17, Birol underlined, “This crisis gave a big boost to clean-energy developments. [Renewables] were growing but the main driver was environmental reasons. Now the biggest driver of global energy growth today is energy security.”

“Renewables are the energy of peace. The long-lasting solutions of our energy security go through renewables,” he further stated.

Birol also indicated a strong year-on-year (YoY) growth in renewable energy of about 5% in 2022.