Global investment in energy is set to hit a new high of $3.3 trillion in 2025, marking a 10% increase from 2024, according to the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) World Energy Investment 2025 report released on June 5.
This surge is largely driven by rising commitments to low-carbon technologies, which will account for roughly $2.2 trillion, or 67%, of total spending.
These investments span solar and nuclear power, battery storage, electric grids, green hydrogen, and energy efficiency solutions.
The report attributes this sharp rise in clean energy funding to heightened concerns over energy security, strong industrial policies, and the growing competitiveness of electricity-based technologies.
Yet, despite this global momentum, stark regional imbalances persist.
Africa, which is home to 20% of the world’s population, receives a mere 2% of the global clean energy investment.
The IEA highlights a worrying trend on the continent, where total energy investment has dropped by one-third over the past decade.
This decline is driven by a fall in fossil fuel financing combined with stagnant growth in clean energy funding.
To reverse this, the agency calls for increased international public funding to unlock far greater private sector investment in Africa’s energy infrastructure.
The report also points to a critical shortfall in power grid investment.
While $400 billion is expected to be spent globally on grids in 2025, this figure remains significantly below what is required to meet rising demand.
According to the IEA, investment in electricity grids must rise to match spending on electricity generation by the early 2030s to ensure stable and reliable power systems, but the current gap remains wide.
China is projected to maintain its position as the world’s largest energy investor, with spending levels nearly double that of the European Union and close to the combined total of the EU and the United States.
Solar photovoltaic energy is expected to draw the largest share of investment next year, at $450 billion, more than any other single technology.
Despite the accelerating global transition to clean energy, the IEA warns that persistent regional and sectoral disparities threaten to slow progress toward a secure and sustainable global energy system.
These concerns are echoed by Wood Mackenzie’s Energy Transition Outlook 2023, which similarly flagged critical gaps in infrastructure and financing.
Wood Mackenzie estimates that $3.5 trillion in annual investments will be necessary to achieve net-zero goals by 2050, underscoring the scale of the challenge ahead.
