IEA expects global energy investment to fall by 20% or $400 B in 2020 due to coronavirus outbreak

The International Energy Agency (IEA) stated on Wednesday that the world’s investment in the energy sector is projected to plummet by a record-high 20% or $400 billion in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Paris-based energy agency warned that the economic impact of public health crisis could have “serious” implications for energy security and clean energy transitions as the world economy recovers from the virus outbreak.

At the start of 2020, IEA said that the global energy investment was on pace for growth of around 2%, reflecting the largest annual rise in spending in six years.

A total of $1.8 trillion was invested in the global energy industry in 2019.

“The historic plunge in global energy investment is deeply troubling for many reasons,” IEA’s Executive Director Fatih Birol said in a statement.

“It means lost jobs and economic opportunities today, as well as lost energy supply that we might well need tomorrow once the economy recovers,” he continued. “The slowdown in spending on key clean energy technologies also risks undermining the much-needed transition to more resilient and sustainable energy systems.”