Record global electricity demand last year was met entirely by low-carbon sources, resulting in fossil fuels generation being substituted rather than supplemented, the Energy Institute’s ‘Statistical Review of World Energy 2026’ shows.
Fossil generation fell overall with renewables and hydro overtaking coal as the largest source of electricity generation, the review, produced in partnership with Ember and in collaboration with Kearney and KPMG, states.
Solar generation expanded by 30% worldwide, while battery capacity grew at 66%, reinforcing the position of the two technologies as the fastest-scaling clean technologies.
The review, which marks its seventy-fifth anniversary this year after the Energy Institute took over its publication from BP in 2023, also concludes that global electrification has reached a tipping point, with demand continuing to grow faster than total energy supply.
Total global electricity generation increased by 3% last year to reach 32 202 TWh, with renewables growth of 861 TWh exceeding the absolute growth in electricity demand in 2025 of 855 TWh, leading to a fall in fossil power.
