Global Report Highlights Urgent Need to Accelerate Decarbonization Efforts Amid Rising Emissions

Original article: Reporte advierte que el mundo no avanza al ritmo necesario para cumplir con las metas de descarbonización

Despite the ongoing expansion of renewable energy sources and the increasing electrification across various sectors, the world remains far from meeting the essential targets needed to combat the climate crisis.

This warning comes from the Fossil Detox Progress Report 2025, prepared by the international consultancy AFRY, which analyzes the current state of energy transition and identifies significant bottlenecks preventing the phase-out of polluting technologies.

The report reveals that in 2024, global greenhouse gas emissions reached nearly 53 gigatons of CO₂ equivalent, marking an approximate increase of 1.5% compared to the previous year.

This trend confirms that emissions have yet to peak, keeping the world off the necessary trajectory to meet the Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 °C.

According to AFRY, to align with this goal, global emissions must be reduced by approximately 42% by 2030, a target that seems distant without a significant acceleration in the implementation of available solutions.

«The transition away from fossil fuels and fossil-derived materials is no longer a distant aspiration; it is becoming a tangible reality. As momentum grows across all sectors, the challenge lies not in identifying solutions but in accelerating their implementation, scaling up investments, and ensuring the transformation is just, resilient, and competitive,» commented Linda Pålsson, CEO of AFRY.

In this context, one of the key findings of the report is that energy transition is no longer solely dependent on adding new renewable capacity.

While 2024 saw the installation of nearly 585 GW globally—primarily in China, Europe, and the United States—the report warns that electric grid infrastructure, energy storage, and system flexibility have emerged as the main bottlenecks.

«In Europe, for example, it will require approximately €2 trillion in grid investments by 2050 to sustain the electrification of transport, industry, and buildings, highlighting the magnitude of the challenge,» the report states.

The analysis also identifies significant lagging in fossil fuel-intensive sectors such as industry and transport. Although energy efficiency has regained prominence, the electrification of industrial heat, building renovations, and the decarbonization of heavy transport are progressing at an insufficient pace.

In this scenario, AFRY’s analysis reveals that there is no one-size-fits-all solution: it will be crucial to combine electrification, sustainable fuels, hydrogen, energy storage, and carbon abatement and removal technologies.

Latin America and Chile

The document identifies Latin America as one of the regions with the highest potential for renewable energy, yet it faces significant structural challenges such as infrastructure deficits, financing limitations, and unstable regulatory frameworks.

In South America, Brazil is highlighted for its energy matrix, which already exceeds 45% renewable participation, although it continues to face persistent challenges regarding land use and deforestation.

Concerning Chile, it mentions that the country shares the region’s main challenges: «Its leadership in renewable energy and ambitions in green hydrogen must be accompanied by an accelerated expansion of electric transmission, greater storage capacity, regulatory clarity, and access to international climate financing—key factors to turn climate goals into concrete projects,» the report states.

«Through the Fossil Detox Progress Report 2025, it can be concluded that the energy transition is no longer constrained by a lack of technology but rather by the speed of implementation, coordination between public and private policies, and the ability to mobilize large-scale investment,» AFRY stressed.

In this context, they concluded that there is a need to advance towards comprehensive strategies that connect energy, industry, infrastructure, and financing to achieve effective and sustainable decarbonization.

The Citizen