Global renewable power is expanding at record speed, but the pace still falls well short of what is needed to meet the 2030 target for tripling renewable energy capacity, according to a new assessment from the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena).
Worldwide installed renewable capacity reached 5.15 terawatts (TW) by the end of 2025 after a record 693 gigawatts (GW) of additions during the year. Yet the current rate of expansion would need to increase substantially, with annual additions averaging about 1,200 GW from 2026 through 2030 to reach the agreed target of 11.2 TW.
The findings form part of Irena’s latest review of progress towards the energy commitments adopted at COP28, including the goal of tripling renewable capacity and doubling the annual rate of energy-efficiency improvements by 2030.
Energy efficiency remains a particular concern. Global energy intensity improved by roughly 2% in 2025, only half the 4% annual improvement required under the agreed target.
The report points to investment, grid capacity and electrification as some of the biggest obstacles standing in the way of faster progress. It estimates that spending on electricity grids and system flexibility will need to approach $1 trillion a year between 2026 and 2030, more than twice the level recorded in 2025.
Expanding battery storage, modernising electricity networks and deploying more efficient electrical technologies will be essential as power systems absorb larger volumes of renewable generation.
Irena also highlighted the growing importance of renewable systems capable of supplying electricity around the clock. Solar and wind combined with storage, supported by digital technologies and artificial intelligence, could help utilities better match fluctuating renewable generation with increasingly strong electricity demand.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres said successive renewable-energy records showed the clean-energy transition was gathering momentum, while urging governments to address infrastructure and investment bottlenecks and channel more capital towards developing economies.
Irena Director-General Francesco La Camera said the 2030 renewable target remained achievable, but warned that energy-efficiency gains were lagging while electricity demand was growing faster than anticipated.
The agency’s updated roadmap calls for faster electrification and a rapid expansion and modernisation of renewable generation, transmission networks, storage and other sources of system flexibility.
Australia’s Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen, who is serving as President of Negotiations for COP31, said stronger investment in grids, storage and electrification would be needed to deliver electricity that is clean, reliable and affordable.
The report forecasts a significant shift in the global power mix by 2030. Solar and wind capacity is expected to surpass total fossil-fuel generation capacity, with variable renewable sources potentially accounting for about 62% of installed global power capacity, compared with 35% in 2025.
Storage economics are also improving rapidly. Battery costs declined by about 30% between 2024 and 2025 and have fallen roughly 95% since 2010, making storage an increasingly important component of renewable power systems.
Around a quarter of utility-scale solar capacity commissioned worldwide in 2025 incorporated systems designed to provide electricity around the clock through the combination of generation and storage.
Looking beyond 2030, Irena said electrification will become increasingly important to improving energy efficiency. The longer-term ambition under discussion for the COP31 process is to increase electricity’s share of global final energy consumption to 35% by 2035.
The message from the latest assessment is clear: renewable deployment is breaking records, but infrastructure, investment and efficiency improvements will need to move considerably faster for the world’s 2030 energy ambitions to remain within reach.
