The rapid growth of clean technology manufacturing is set to create new markets worth hundreds of billions of dollars as well as millions of new jobs in the coming years, if countries make good on their energy and climate pledges, said Fatih Birol, Executive Director of the International Energy Agency.
Introducing a new report, ‘Energy Technology Perspectives 2023’, Birol said a new global energy economy based on technologies such as solar, wind, electric vehicles and electrolysers is emerging and economies around the world are stepping up efforts to expand their clean energy technology. The current global energy crisis “has only accelerated these efforts,” he said.
Highlighting the “massive implications” for global governments, businesses, investors and citizens, Birol said, “Every country needs to identify how it can benefit from the opportunities and navigate the challenges of this new energy economy”.
He said that to secure its place in the new energy economy each country will have to develop an industrial strategy that take into account the emerging challenges that these changes bring, such as potentially risky levels of concentration in manufacturing and minerals supply chains.
He said investors are “weighing key decisions on future manufacturing operations” for a very large global project pipeline and governments “have a role here in providing the supportive policies and broader industrial strategies that can provide developers and investors with the visibility and confidence they need to go ahead”.
He warned that it was “not realistic” for countries to try to compete across all parts of clean energy technology supply chains. Instead should “play to their strengths, whether that comes in the form of mineral resources, low-cost clean energy supplies, a workforce with relevant skills, or synergies with existing industries.”
Download the report here.