Can EVs and solar save the world? The IEA thinks so
The International Energy Agency (IEA) released its 2023 Net Zero Roadmap today – here’s what’s happened since 2021 and what must urgently happen before 2030.
EV and solar lead the way
The International Energy Agency’s Net Zero Roadmap sets out what would need to happen in the global energy sector in the years and decades ahead to limit global warming to 1.5C. The IEA debuted the first roadmap in May 2021, and this latest release updates the first roadmap to take into account everything that’s happened in the last two years.
The 2023 Net Zero Roadmap takes into account the post-pandemic economic rebound and the incredible growth in some clean energy technologies but also increased investment in fossil fuels and stubbornly high emissions.
Since 2021, record growth in EV and solar sales, along with planned rollout for new manufacturing capacity, are in line with a pathway toward net zero emissions globally by 2050. That’s a big deal – and pretty good news – because those two technologies alone deliver one-third of the emissions reductions between today and 2030 in the pathway.
In the 2021 roadmap, the IEA projected that technologies not yet on the market would deliver nearly 50% of emissions reductions needed for net zero in 2050. That number of technologies not yet available has now fallen to around 35% in the 2023 update. In other words, the innovations are materializing and being applied.
Going forward, the Net Zero Roadmap says we’re going to have to seriously ramp up this decade to stay on track. Before 2030, the main actions we need to take are as follows:
- Global renewable power capacity must triple.
- The annual rate of energy efficiency improvement must double.
- Sales of EVs and heat pumps must rise sharply.
- Energy sector methane emissions must fall by 75%.
If we achieve these things – and they are achievable if geopolitics are set aside – then we will see more than 80% of the reductions that we need by the end of 2030.
IEA executive director Fatih Birol said:
The good news is we know what we need to do – and how to do it. Our 2023 Net Zero Roadmap, based on the latest data and analysis, shows a path forward.
But we also have a very clear message: Strong international cooperation is crucial to success. Governments need to separate climate from geopolitics, given the scale of the challenge at hand.
Dave Jones, global insights lead at energy think tank Ember, had this to say about the IEA’s 2023 roadmap:
Tripling renewable electricity is the single biggest action required this decade to secure a rapid shift away from fossil fuels. Electricity is the new oil, as clean electrification takes center stage. It requires world leaders to think big and build big. It’s not rocket science, but it does require the determination and urgency of a space race. Importantly, emerging economies need investment to enable them to enter the race, which ultimately will benefit us all.
Electrek’s Take
What’s also interesting to see in the 227-page 2023 roadmap are the technologies that got downgraded in climate mitigation scenarios. The IEA states that hydrogen and hydrogen-based fuels, sustainable bioenergy, and carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) are critical to achieving net zero emissions but have all underperformed. Its perspective on CCUS, for example, is largely “one of unmet expectations.”
It’s a waste of time to include technologies in the climate change “space race” that haven’t made much or any progress. Green hydrogen hasn’t moved with the speed and efficacy of electrification, and CCUS – well, we at Electrek are at the point where we’ll believe CCUS when we see it.
It’s pretty clear what the world has to do: Keep the fossil fuels in the ground and electrify. Renewables and EVs will give us what we need to avoid the point of no return.
Read more: Global electric car sales’ ‘explosive growth’ – in numbers
Photo: Badenova
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Coming in hot… well, as hot as these solar cars can get, upwards of 60 mph.
It’s hard to believe we’re just over a month away from this year’s Electrek Formula Sun Grand Prix 2025 collegiate solar car track event! In July, some of the greatest engineering minds from universities across North America will roll into Bowling Green, Kentucky, with their respective hand-built solar-powered EVs to go head-to-head in a competition all about pushing the limits of sustainable transport. The goal? Complete as many laps as possible each race day using nothing but sunshine.
The event is open to the public and free to attend. Raycing kicks off on July 3 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. CT and continues through July 5 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. CT. You’re not going to want to miss this!
As a refresher, the Formula Sun Grand Prix (FSGP) is held annually and typically acts as a pre-qualifier for the American Solar Challenge (ASC), a cross-country solar car race held every two years. During ASC years, FSGP is where teams prove their vehicles are road-worthy and safe enough to trek over 1,500+ miles from Tennessee to Wyoming on public roads.
This year, however, is an off-year for ASC. Teams will only compete in the track event. Here are last year’s FSGP/ASC results and highlights.
The 2025 Electrek FSGP will again be held at the National Corvette Museum Motorsports Park in Bowling Green, Kentucky, which, interestingly enough, General Motors occasionally uses for Corvette testing and development. It’s here, students will go head-to-head in a grand prix-style event, competing to complete as many laps as possible using nothing but solar power. It may sound simple, but it’s a test of speed, efficiency, and endurance.
Last year’s event drew a record turnout, with more than 32 teams and 710 student participants from universities across the U.S. and Canada.
The ASC and FSGP are organized by the Innovators Educational Foundation (IEF), a 501c3 non-profit providing hands-on, multidisciplinary learning opportunities for college students. In 2023, Electrek announced the signing of a five-year title sponsorship agreement with the IEF, which will guarantee funds to host the yearly races through 2028.
This was a natural fit. EVs, solar power, sustainable transport, and collaboration—this is what we’re all about at Electrek, and we’re thrilled to once again be a part of such an incredible event.
Other 2025 Electrek FSGP sponsors include Altair, Blue Origin, MathWorks, Generac, and in previous years Tesla, which have used the event as prime recruiting grounds. In fact, in past years, one recruiter even told Electrek that “getting great employees at the Formula Sun Grand Prix was like shooting fish in a barrel” and added “students at these events are orders of magnitude more likely to yield successful hires than typical campus recruiting events.”
And when it comes to industry talent, FSGP/ASC has serious roots.
JB Straubel, Tesla’s co-founder, ex-CTO, and current sitting board member, got his start in the Stanford Solar Car program. While he currently serves as CEO of lithium-ion battery materials company Redwood Materials, Straubel talks about how many of Tesla’s early hires came straight out of that same solar car team in the video below.
If you’re interested in joining us in sponsoring these events, please get in touch here!
We’ll continue to post more details, including the full schedule, as the race nears! Keep an eye on the website as well.
2024 Electrek FSGP/ASC recaps
Below are the full recap videos from the Formula Sun Grand Prix/American Solar Challenge. The event’s official Flickr page has also amassed more than 1,500 photos. Check them out—they’re super cool!
More details and full results on last year’s Electrek American Solar Challenge and Formula Sun Grand Prix can be found on the event’s website.
Note: The Formula Sun Grand Prix is not in any way associated or affiliated with the Formula 1 companies, FORMULA 1 racing, or the FIA Formula One World Championship.
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The struggling carmaker is urgently cutting costs as it looks to turn things around. Nissan is offering buyouts to US workers at its Canton, Mississippi, plant, citing it as a “crucial” part of its comeback plan.
Nissan offers buyouts for US workers at its Canton plant
Nissan has been in the spotlight over the past few weeks for all the wrong reasons. It began earlier this month, following the company’s announcement that it was abandoning plans to build a new EV battery plant in Japan.
The facility was set to produce lower-cost LFP batteries, which have been key to BYD and other Chinese EV brands’ rapid rise in the global auto industry. With an annual production capacity of up to 5 GWh, the plant was expected to slash EV battery costs by 20% to 30%.
Facing slumping sales, lower profits, and more competition, Nissan launched its new recovery plan, dubbed “Re:Nissan,” earlier this month.
The comeback strategy involves cutting 20,000 jobs, or around 15% of its global workforce, by 2027. Nissan is also closing several plants to slash costs by 250 billion yen as it aims to return to profitability by fiscal year 2026.
According to an internal email, viewed by Reuters, Nissan is offering buyouts for US workers at its Canton plant. The email also stated that merit-based pay increases are suspended globally.
Christian Meunier, Nissan America’s chairman, said the buyouts are “crucial for Nissan’s comeback” in the US, its most important market.
“While substantial efforts have been made in the US to help right-size Nissan, we need to take additional, limited, strategic action here at a local level,” Meunier said in an email.
Nissan announced a voluntary separation program for a select number of US salaried employees. Since the plan is still ongoing, Nissan didn’t provide any further details.
On Wednesday, a separate report from Bloomberg News claimed that Nissan is looking to raise over 1 trillion yen ($6.9 billion) with the help of the UK government to repay a massive loan due next year.
Nissan invested $500 million to upgrade its Canton plant for electric vehicle (EV) production in the US. Although it initially planned to begin building EVs in the US this year, Nissan delayed production until at least 2028.
Later this year, Nissan will launch the upgraded LEAF, now with a longer driving range, an NACS charging port, and a more SUV-like design. It will be one of ten new Nissan or Infiniti models to launch by 2027.
Electrek’s Take
As Electrek reported yesterday, Nissan’s comeback plan hinges on its upgraded e-Power technology. The only issue is that the system is designed for hybrids.
Nissan is following in Toyota and Honda’s footsteps by advancing new hybrid and plug-in hybrid tech, but the company is already two steps behind.
Doubling down on hybrids and PHEVs while delaying more EV projects will likely only set Nissan up for failure over the next few years.
The Japanese automaker is already losing market share in some of its biggest markets, like China and Southeast Asia.
Can Nissan turn things around in the US, its most important market? Or, will it continue to fall out of favor with lower-cost, more advanced EVs on the way from brands like Rivian and Lucid? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
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