This report presents the results of a trend assessment of global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from fossil fuel and cement up to 2015, and updates last year’s assessment.

As a major global economic driving force, the transport sector –and in particular the automotive sector– has provided employment and shaped technological progress over the course of a century. This is true for Germany as much as it is for China. Daunting climate and environmental concerns have cast a large shadow on this development.

Several modelling studies have highlighted the risk that biofuel production on agricultural land can displace existing food and animal feed production. This could indirectly lead to the conversion of forests and other natural land into new cropland to compensate for the displaced production.

There is overwhelming evidence of the harm caused by the European Union’s current bioenergy policy to people in developing countries, to the climate and to Europe’s own sustainable development. The policy is on a collision course with the Paris climate agreement and the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.

Sustainable biofuels have an important role to play in Africa’s development. Sugarcane bioethanol is currently the most cost-effective commercial biofuel and has the highest energy balance. The bioethanol industry, like sugar production, has matured in technological terms.

IRENA’s Renewable Energy Innovation Outlook series analyses the emerging developments making renewable energy technologies (RETs) increasingly competitive in the world’s energy markets and systems.

Energy use in transport accounts for around one-third of global final energy consumption, and demand is growing rapidly, at about 1% annually. Transport has the lowest renewable energy share of any sector, making progress in this area crucial for the global transition to a sustainable energy system.

A summary of the history and current state of biofuels policy in Indonesia, highlighting the tension between the country’s renewable energy policy and the ambition in reducing its carbon emissions. Increasing domestic use of palm oil biodiesel is a pressing strategic issue for Indonesia.