Electrified transport remained the largest investment driver, reaching $757bn in 2024, finds the analysis. This figure includes spending on passenger electric vehicles (EVs), electric two- and three-wheelers, commercial EVs, public charging infrastructure and fuel cell vehicles.  

Investments in renewable energy hit $728bn, including investment in wind (both on- and offshore), solar, biofuels, biomass and waste, marine, geothermal and small hydro. Meanwhile, investment in power grids totalled $390bn, including investment in transmission and distribution lines, substation equipment and the digitalisation of the grid.

BNEF’s report also reveals a marked difference between investment in mature and emerging sectors of the clean energy economy. Technologies that are proven, commercially scalable and have established business models, like renewables, energy storage ($54bn), EVs and power grids, accounted for the vast majority of investment in 2024. These sectors drew $1.93tn in total, growing 14.7%, despite hindrance from policy decisions, higher interest rates and expected slower consumer purchasing.

In contrast, investment in emerging technologies, like electrified heat, hydrogen, carbon capture and storage, nuclear, clean industry and clean shipping, reached only $155bn, for an overall drop of 23% year-on-year. Factors that discourage investment in these sectors include affordability, technological maturity and commercial scalability, notes BNEF. In order to scale up these industries, the public and private sectors need to do more to de-risk these technologies, otherwise they are not likely to have any meaningful impact on emissions by the end of the decade, it warns.

The largest market for investment was mainland China, which alone accounted for $818bn of investment, up 20% from 2023, according to the report. China’s investment growth was equivalent to two-thirds of the total global increase in the year, with all sectors reviewed in the analysis showing solid growth.

The EU, US and UK, which drove growth in 2023, saw different results in 2024, notes BNEF. Investment was stagnant in the US, reaching $338bn, and down in both the EU and UK, hitting $381bn and $65.3bn, respectively. China’s total investment last year was greater than the combined investment of the US, EU and UK. Of the large markets included in the report, India and Canada also added to overall global growth, increasing their investments by 13% and 19%, respectively.

BNEF estimates that global energy transition investment would need to average $5.6tn each year from 2025–2030 to get on track for global net zero by 2050, in line with the Paris Agreement. This finding relies on BNEF’s New Energy Outlook 2024, which details a global pathway to net zero. Comparison of the two reports suggests that current investment levels are only 37% of what is required to get on track. The ‘investment gap’ differs by geography and technology; China is closest to being on track, followed by Germany and the UK.

‘Our report shows just how much growth we’ve seen in the energy transition over the past few years, despite political uncertainty and high interest rates,’ comments Albert Cheung, Deputy CEO of BNEF. ‘There is still much more that needs to be done, especially in emerging areas like industrial decarbonisation, hydrogen and carbon capture, in order to reach global net zero goals. True partnership between the private and public sectors is the only solution to unlock the potential of these technologies.’