Global energy demand sees biggest increase this decade, with gas the fuel of choice: IEA

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Robert Walton, Utility Dive

Worldwide energy demand surged 2.3% last year, a pace the International Energy Agency said was the fastest in this decade, driven by a strong global economy and the rise in heating and cooling load.
Natural gas accounted for 45% of the rise in consumption, the group concluded in its Global Energy and CO2 status report, released last month. Fossil fuels met almost 70% of the new demand, which led to a 1.7% increase in global carbon emissions.
Renewables, including hydropower, increased by 4% last year and now account for almost 25% of global power output — second after coal. While coal's overall place in the energy mix continues to decline, demand for coal has now risen slightly for two years.