Let me first say, I agree with Friedrich that the Tropical Forest Forever Facility is fantastic. You know the European Unions heart is wide open, and we have mobilized significant funding on forests through several initiatives with Member States. So Friedrich, promise me to work with the Member States to see if we can join the TFFF.
And yes, President Lula, I am very confident that I will come on 20 December and I hope that we will be able to sign the Mercosur agreement. This will be historic. I would be very glad if that happened.
Now, on to our topic. Two years ago, we made a very bold promise, a commitment – to triple renewable energy and double energy efficiency. I want to thank you, President Lula, for this opportunity to take stock. I want to join the choir of those who said we have good news. We are moving ever faster to the goal of tripling the renewable energies by 2030 and doubling the efficiency. Solar and wind have overtaken coal as the largest source of electricity. This year, 95% of new capacity worldwide was from renewables. Renewables are no longer just cleaner; they are also cheaper. And I am very glad to see that countries are putting these goals at the heart of their climate plans.Almost half of them included a target for renewables in their new NDCs. So we can all say the clean energy transition is here to stay.
But we must keep the momentum. That is why earlier this year, together with many of you here around the table, we launched the Global Energy Transition Forum to measure the implementation. The Forum has grown to 80 countries that are officially now member of the Forum. We launched a process with three ministerials – in Brussels, in South Korea, and in New York. In total, more than 110 countries are participating. As we move forward, there are two priorities I want to shed a light on.
First, we must ensure that the benefits of the transition are felt everywhere. Just two figures: Of the USD 2 trillion invested in clean energy in 2024, only 2% went to Africa, the continent having 60% of the worlds best solar potential.
We have to change that. This is why, together with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and the Global Citizen, we launched a campaign, we call it ‘Scaling Up Renewables in Africa. Our goal is, together with the private sector, to accelerate Africas clean energy transition. That will create jobs in Africa, and deliver on our global climate goals, and it will provide access to electricity to 600 million people in Africa that currently lack it.
My second point has already been echoed by the business sector, that is infrastructure. We must build the grids and storage to match our ambition. Solar and wind are the fastest growing sources of electricity worldwide. But we also need the infrastructure that can capture power when it is abundant and store it for when it is needed. The IEA estimates we need a six-fold increase in storage by 2030. That is why Europe is investing not only in new renewables, but in the networks and storage that make them reliable for all. In our investment programme Global Gateway, we are investing in infrastructure abroad. At least 25% of the EUR 300 billion went into grids and storage.
The coming years will be decisive. So let us continue our work to make sure the global energy transition delivers for all.
Thank you.
