Major Countries and Regions

In 2023, the world's top six electricity emitters showed diverging trends: China, India, and Russia saw emissions increases driven by demand and coal reliance, while the US, EU, and Japan recorded declines. China led global renewable growth but remains the largest emitter. The EU achieved its largest absolute emissions reduction since 2000, and the US continued its long-term decline in coal. However, most of these regions still need to accelerate clean energy deployment to align with IEA Net Zero targets.

• China was the world's largest power sector emitter in 2023, producing 5,491 million tonnes of CO2 (MtCO2). While it added more than half of the world's new wind and solar generation in 2023, its power sector emissions still rose by 5.9% (+307 MtCO2) due to high electricity demand growth (6.9%) and a decline in hydro generation caused by droughts.
• The United States is the second largest power sector emitter (1,570 MtCO2), with emissions that have fallen 33% since their 2007 peak. In 2023, US power sector emissions dropped by 5.1% (-85 MtCO2), driven by a 19% fall in coal generation and lower overall power demand, although growth in gas generation (+115 TWh) prevented a global fall in gas generation for the year.

APA

Ember (2024). Major Countries and Regions. https://ember-energy.org/chapter/major-countries-and-regions/

Chicago

Ember. Major Countries and Regions. 2024. https://ember-energy.org/chapter/major-countries-and-regions/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Ember |title=Major Countries and Regions |date=8 May 2024 |url=https://ember-energy.org/chapter/major-countries-and-regions/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{ember2024major, author = {{Ember}}, title = {{Major Countries and Regions}}, institution = {Ember}, year = {2024}, month = may, url = {https://ember-energy.org/chapter/major-countries-and-regions/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }