The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) projects that world energy use will increase 53% by 2035, and renewable energy will be the fastest-growing source of primary energy over the next 25 years.
Renewable energy consumption is expected to increase by 2.8% annually, and the renewable share of total energy use will increase from 10% in 2008 to 15% in 2035, according to the EIA's International Energy Outlook 2011 (IEO2011).
Renewables are the fastest-growing source of new electricity generation, increasing by 3% and outpacing the average annual increases for natural gas (2.6%), nuclear power (2.4%) and coal (1.9%), according to the IEO2011.
Fossil fuels, however, are expected to continue to supply much of the energy used worldwide throughout the projection, and will account for 78% of world energy use, according to the IEO2011. While projections reflect current laws and policies as of the start of this year, past experience suggests that renewable energy deployment is often significantly affected by policy changes.
Natural gas is projected to have the fastest growth rate among the fossil fuels over the 2008 to 2035 projection period. World natural-gas consumption is expected to increase 1.6% per year, from 111 trillion cubic feet in 2008 to 169 trillion cubic feet in 2035.
Electricity is the world's fastest-growing form of end-use energy consumption, according to IEO2011. Net electricity generation worldwide is expected to rise by 2.3% annually on average through 2035.
China and India will lead the growth in world demand for energy in the future. The economies of China and India were among those least affected by the worldwide recession. They continue to lead world economic growth and energy-demand growth in the reference case.
