The International Energy Agency report confirms a historic shift in the sector: renewables surpass coal, electricity grows at an unprecedented pace and challenges in security, investment and climate demand new responses for the post-2025 world.
The year 2025 enters history as a watershed moment for the energy landscape. According to the World Energy Outlook 2025, electricity is growing at record-high rates, driven by digitalization, transportation electrification, increased industrial demand and the expansion of data centers, artificial intelligence and cooling systems. Globally, electricity already accounts for 21% of final energy consumption and is expected to reach between 40% and 50% of total energy use by 2035, depending on the adoption of electric vehicles, smart grids and the strength of public policies.
Renewables surpass coal and drive growth
For the first time, global renewable power generation (mainly solar and wind) has surpassed global coal-fired generation. This means clean sources are now the leading contributors to worldwide electricity demand growth. Solar PV alone accounted for nearly 80% of the increase in electricity supply in 2024–2025, according to the BBC.
The IEA forecasts that by 2035, 80% of net consumption growth will be provided by renewables, with a strong emphasis on Brazil, India, Southeast Asia, China and parts of Africa—regions blessed with high solar potential and abundant natural resources.
The new electricity map — and Brazil’s role
The geography of the energy sector has shifted. While China once accounted for more than 60% of global growth, India, Southeast Asia, Latin America and parts of Africa have now emerged as major engines of expansion.
Brazil, for example, reached an 88% renewable share of its electricity matrix in 2024–2025, according to the official EPE website. Highlights include the growth of solar (+39.6%), wind (+12.4%) and the country’s longstanding leadership in biomass and hydropower.
This expansion places Brazil in a privileged position to attract low-carbon industries, export technology and shape policies for security, access and innovation on a global scale.
Investment and bottlenecks
Despite the green boom, the study shows that investments in power grids, batteries and system flexibility are not keeping pace with the rapid expansion of renewables. Annual spending on new power plants has risen 70% since 2015 (surpassing USD 1 trillion), but grid investment remains at less than half of that, around USD 400 billion per year.
As a result, some regions are facing transmission congestion, delays in connecting solar and wind projects, and even increases in electricity costs for end consumers. Battery storage reached 75 GW installed in 2024, but it still does not fully meet flexibility needs, especially during seasonal demand peaks.
Critical minerals: a new geopolitical front
The report highlights risks associated with the supply chain of strategic minerals essential for batteries, solar energy and electric vehicles. A single country (China) is responsible for 70% of global refining of these minerals, and 19 out of the 20 key critical minerals show high production concentration.
In 2025, more than half of these minerals were subject to some form of export control, making supply security not only a technical challenge but also a political and commercial one.
The persistence of fossil fuels and the limits of the transition
Despite progress, coal, oil and gas remain at high levels of use. They are expected to show meaningful declines only from the next decade onward, depending on the real political commitment of major economies. In sectors such as aviation, heavy transport and petrochemicals, fossil dependence is expected to remain significant until 2040, even under the most optimistic scenarios.
Without accelerated investments and policies, the world is on track for a temperature rise between 2.5°C and 3°C, according to the IEA itself, exceeding the safe limit advocated by the IPCC.
Around 660 million people still lack access to electricity in 2025, and 2.1 billion do not have clean cooking solutions. The WEO 2025 proposes rapid electrification pathways for rural regions using renewables, public inclusion policies and regional integrations to democratize access within 10 years.
The boom in digitalization, AI and the cooling challenge
Data centers, artificial intelligence, connectivity and cooling now account for the largest share of new electricity demand. Data center consumption alone is expected to triple by 2035, with heavy concentration in China, the United States and Western Europe.
Policies for efficiency, smart grids and appliance modernization have become urgent due to the risk of power spikes and outages during heatwaves and cumulative demand in large cities.
Security and resilience
The IEA reinforces that energy security depends on flexible grids, affordable storage, cyber protection, diversification of mineral suppliers and technical capacity, along with rapid responses to extreme weather events such as record heat, droughts and storms that are already affecting the reliability of current networks. Resilience must be a global priority to ensure affordable and stable prices across regions.
Conclusion: action, equity and technology will define the future
The “Electricity Era” has arrived, but its success depends on a combination of bold public policies, climate commitments aligned with the Paris Agreement, investments in grids and storage, a strong push for innovation and the inclusion of the most vulnerable populations.
WEO 2025 delivers a clear message: we have never been so close to a global energy transition, yet we still need to overcome logistical, political and economic challenges to ensure that the benefits of this new energy cycle reach all people and businesses across the planet.
Comment