- In a historic shift, renewable sources overtook coal as the top source of global electricity for the first time in the first half of 2025.
- Several surprising countries, including Pakistan, Chile, and Hungary, are executing stunningly rapid transitions to clean energy, outpacing expectations.
- Pakistan exemplifies this trend, with its share of solar power surging from virtually zero to 30% in just six years.
- Despite this boom, global energy demand is rising so fast that fossil fuel use continues to grow alongside renewables in many regions.
A Tale of Two Energy Futures
Despite a backdrop of troubling climate news and persistent fossil fuel production, a powerful and more hopeful story is unfolding across the globe: the exponential growth of clean energy. For the first time in history, renewables surpassed coal as the leading source of global electricity in the first half of 2025—a landmark achievement. This surge, led by increasingly affordable solar and wind technology, is happening at a blistering pace, often in the most unexpected places, heralding what experts call the dawn of a new energy age.
According to the International Energy Agency, global renewable power capacity is on track to double over the next five years. However, the path forward isn’t entirely clear. “Transforming the entire power sector to clean energy isn’t yet inevitable,” warns Hannah Pitt, a director at the Rhodium Group, emphasizing that the race against rising planet-warming pollution is far from over.
The Dual Strategy of Global Powers
The world’s largest economies are at a crossroads. China, described as the “first electrostate,” is leading the charge, installing more wind and solar power last year than the total renewable capacity of the United States. Yet, it simultaneously hit a ten-year high in new coal production. Similarly, the US and India continue to expand renewables while also relying on fossil fuels to meet exponential growth in energy demand.
This paradox highlights a critical challenge: in many nations, clean energy is not yet displacing fossil fuels but merely supplementing them to keep pace with soaring energy consumption.
The Unlikely Leaders of the Green Revolution
While global giants navigate their complex energy needs, a more dramatic story is emerging from smaller economies. A flood of low-cost solar panels, batteries, and wind turbine components, largely from China, has enabled developing nations to leapfrog traditional energy infrastructure.
“We’ve seen the world starting to benefit from that scale, enabling these emerging economies to seize the opportunity to really leap-frog into the next energy era,” said Lars Nitter Havro of Rystad Energy.
Stunningly Fast Transitions
Several countries are demonstrating just how quickly this transformation can occur:
- Pakistan: In what Havro calls a “preposterous” surge, Pakistan has undergone one of the world’s fastest solar revolutions. In just six years, the share of solar in its power mix rocketed from zero to 30%.
- Chile: The nation has been installing massive solar farms in its remote Atacama Desert, harnessing one of the planet’s most sun-rich environments.
- Hungary: A decade ago, the country had almost no solar power. Today, thanks to government rebates and relaxed regulations, it has experienced a rapid solar boom.
- Greece: Solar panels are now a common sight across its Mediterranean hills and islands, marking a major shift in its energy landscape.
These nations prove that a rapid switch to renewables is not a matter of decades, but years. As Malgorzata Wiatros-Motyka, a senior analyst at Ember, told CNN, the momentum is undeniable. “You cannot stop it now.”
Image Referance: https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/07/climate/solar-wind-renewables-transition-global-pakistan-hungary-chile