Today, I heard about the prowess of GPT-5, which now powers ChatGPT, and out of curiosity I asked it to generate a blog post updating the one I had written in 2016. It "thought" for about 15 seconds, "analyzed" data for another few and then produced the following complete with citations!
2024 Global Energy Scene: Progress Amid Persistent Challenges
1. Energy Demand & Total Supply
Global energy supply rose by 2% in 2024, driven by demand across every energy source—fossil fuels, nuclear, hydro, and renewables alike Energy InstituteReuters. This mirrored the fastest growth across all sources since 2006 Reuters.
2. Fossil Fuels Still Dominant
Despite massive gains in clean energy, fossil fuels remained dominant—accounting for 86% of the energy mix Energy Institute. Natural gas demand surged 2.5%, extracting the largest share of the increase among fossil fuels. Coal remained the single largest source globally, rising 1.2%, while oil grew less than 1% American Gas AssociationReuters.
3. Record CO₂ Emissions
Energy-related CO₂ emissions climbed 1%, reaching approximately 40.8 GtCO₂e—a new all-time high for the fourth consecutive year Reuters.
4. Renewable Energy Expansion
Wind and solar led the clean energy charge, expanding 16% in 2024, nearly nine times faster than overall energy demand ReutersEnergy Institute. The UN underscored this shift as reaching a "positive tipping point," noting that renewables accounted for 74% of growth in global power generation and 92.5% of new electricity capacity, helped by rapidly falling costs (Solar – 41% cheaper; Wind – 53% cheaper than the lowest-cost fossil fuels) AP News. IRENA reports that global renewable capacity additions totaled 582 GW—19.8% above 2023, with PV contributing 452 GW and wind 114 GW—bringing installed capacity to 4,443 GW by year-end Wikipedia.
5. U.S. Energy Highlights
The U.S. set a new record with total energy production exceeding 103 quads in 2024 (+1% from 2023) U.S. Energy Information Administration:
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Natural gas remained the largest source (~38%),
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Crude oil hit a record 13.2 million barrels per day (+2%) U.S. Energy Information Administration,
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Coal production dropped to its lowest level since 1964 (~512 million short tons) U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Renewables rose significantly—biofuels reached a record 1.4 million bpd (+6%), solar grew 25%, and wind 8% U.S. Energy Information Administration. On the consumption side, renewables hit a record 8.6 quads (+5%), nuclear held steady at 8.2 quads, and coal consumption fell to 7.9 quads—lowest since 1949 U.S. Energy Information Administration.
6. Electrification & AI’s Energy Impact
The rising demand for electricity—driven by cooling, electrified transport, industry, data centers, and AI infrastructure—outpaced total energy growth, reflecting faster-than-average power sector expansion IEA. Energy-hungry AI data centers are adding strain to grids, often turning to gas-powered solutions, including converting old coal plants, with over 85 such projects underway globally Financial TimesBusiness Insider.
7. Geopolitical Dynamics
Rich Western nations—including the U.S., UK, Canada, Norway, and Australia—are leading a wave of new oil and gas exploration in 2024. This expansion threatens to release nearly 12 billion tonnes of emissions, undermining climate goals The Guardian. Additionally, geopolitical tensions—especially stemming from Ukraine and the Middle East—are reshaping global supply chains and energy security strategies, reinforcing the prominence of domestic clean energy investments ReutersAxios.
Outlook & Reflection
Much like 2016, 2024 underscores a paradox: renewables are surging, but as additive, not yet substitutive, with fossil fuel use and emissions still rising. While clean energy growth is historic, the world remains off pace for COP28’s goal of tripling renewable capacity by 2030 ReutersAP News. Energy security worries, AI’s rising footprint, and geopolitical strains complicate a smooth energy transition.
I then asked Chat GPT to generate a chart and use country-specific information as illustrative examples, and it produced the following.
2024 — Global energy: big renewables growth, but fossils still rule
Executive summary
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Global primary energy (2024): ~620 EJ (Energy Institute). Fossil fuels still account for about 86% of that total — roughly 533 EJ of fossil vs 87 EJ of non-fossil energy. (Chart 1 below.) Energy Institute
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CO₂ from energy reached a new record in 2024 (~40.8 GtCO₂e), driven by rising use of fossil fuels even as renewables expand rapidly. Reuters
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Renewables (wind + solar) remain the fastest-growing part of the system (double-digit growth rates), but are being added in parallel with fossil growth rather than entirely replacing it. Energy Institute
Charts (embedded)
Chart A — Global primary energy (2024): Fossil vs non-fossil
(From Energy Institute totals: global primary = 620 EJ, fossil ≈ 86%.) Energy Institute
(Displayed below — the pie shows ~533.2 EJ fossil / 86.8 EJ non-fossil.)
Chart B — U.S. primary energy production (2024, approximate breakdown)
(EIA reports U.S. total production ≈ 103.3 quads in 2024 — I used EIA headline numbers and reported shares to build an illustrative breakdown: natural gas ≈ 38% of production, crude ≈ 27%, reported renewables ≈ 8.6 quads, nuclear ≈ 8.2 quads, remainder = other fossil/NGLs. Source: EIA.) U.S. Energy Information Administration+1
(Displayed below — the pie shows natural gas and oil as the largest slices, renewables rising but still a minority of primary production.)
If you want the charts exported as PNG/SVG or resized for your blog, tell me the exact sizes and I’ll create downloadable files for you.
Country/region snapshots (illustrative highlights & what to watch)
United States
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Production record: The U.S. produced a record ~103.3 quads in 2024, up ≈1% from 2023. Multiple fuels set records (natural gas, crude oil, NGLs, solar, wind, biofuels). U.S. Energy Information Administration+1
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Electricity / Renewables: Renewables continued to expand strongly — utility and distributed solar plus wind caused a meaningful rise in renewable generation (EIA reports renewable electricity growth in 2024). Renewables supplied roughly a quarter of U.S. electricity in 2024. ElectrekEnerdata
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Takeaway: U.S. is simultaneously scaling renewables and producing record fossil output — a classic transition-phase pattern.
China (Asia Pacific)
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Massive renewables roll-out: China added more renewable generation in 2023–24 than the rest of the world combined, driving global renewables growth figures reported by the EI. Asia Pacific remains the world’s largest energy-consuming region (~292 EJ in 2023 per the EI). Energy Institute
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Takeaway: China’s buildout of solar and wind is a global engine for renewables but overall energy demand growth there still needs fossil backup in many sectors.
India & South Asia
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High growth potential: South Asia consumed ~45 EJ in 2023; energy demand growth is driven by development needs and population growth (EI). This region is a major growth frontier for both fossil consumption and renewable deployment. Energy Institute
Europe / EU
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Diversifying supply & electrification: Europe continues to push electrification and improve gas diversification after recent geopolitical shocks. Several EU nations show plateauing fossil demand in power, but industry and heating keep system complexity high. (EI regional analysis.) Energy Institute
What's new since your 2016 model (quick comparative takeaways)
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Renewables scale: The pace and scale of wind and solar additions far outstrips anything seen in 2016 — but they are still not yet displacing total fossil consumption at the global level. Energy Institute
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Record energy CO₂: Unlike the hoped-for declines, energy-related CO₂ set records through 2024 — a major difference from the optimism in some 2016 scenarios. Reuters
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U.S. production dynamics: The U.S. now regularly records >100 quads of production (a new normal); renewables are a much larger share of electricity but primary energy remains fossil-heavy. U.S. Energy Information Administration+1
Short methodology note (so your readers know)
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Global numbers: come from the Energy Institute Statistical Review of World Energy 2024 (their data tables & pdf). I used headline totals and shares from that source for the global chart/text. Energy Institute
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U.S. numbers: come from EIA pages summarizing 2024 (Monthly Energy Review / Today in Energy pieces). The U.S. pie uses EIA totals and reported fuel-shares (I made a small number of arithmetic allocations to produce a clear, blog-friendly graphic — I flagged these as approximate). U.S. Energy Information Administration+1
