Total energy production in Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries rose 4 percent in 2014 while CO2 emissions from fuel combustion fell, according to new data from the International Energy Agency. “The leading factor in the recent decoupling is a decline in the energy intensity of OECD countries’ economies, which is the result of greater energy efficiency and warmer seasons among other factors. Another contributor is reduced emissions per kilowatt-hour in electricity generation, the sector responsible for two-fifths of energy-related CO2 in OECD,” the IEA said in a press release.
Emissions in the 34 OECD countries in 2014 fell 1.4 percent, the data shows. “That reduction in generation emissions is partly the result of a 9.7 [percent] surge in the share of renewables other than hydropower. … That increase lifted the share of electricity generation from those renewables, made up of geothermal, solar, wind, tide, biofuels, waste and heat, to a full 10 [percent],” the IEA explained.
