A report from the Energy Institute indicates that approximately one-third of the growth in global carbon emissions in 2025 originated from the United States, driven by rising natural gas prices that forced power producers to revert to coal.

Key Findings from the Report

The report, a collaborative effort involving the Energy Institute, Ember, the Kearney Institute, and KPMG, highlights several critical points.

Last year, coal consumption in the US increased by 10%, reversing the trend towards cleaner energy sources and contributing to an overall rise in emissions.

Carbon emissions from the global energy sector grew by 1.1%, reaching 35.806 billion metric tons of CO2. More than one-third of this increase was attributed to the United States. This growth in North America reversed a decade-long trend of emissions declining by 0.7%.

Global energy demand continues to expand. Total energy supply increased by 1.7% in 2025, with renewable sources contributing the largest share. Electricity generation from renewables grew by 9.1%, with solar power surging by 30%.

The growth in electricity demand, driven primarily by electric vehicles, data centers, and artificial intelligence, outpaced supply growth, rising 3% year-on-year.

Global oil consumption increased by 1.3% in 2025, reaching 103 million barrels per day, which is higher than the 1.1% growth seen in 2024. Meanwhile, oil production grew by 3.5%.

Growth in natural gas demand was concentrated in Europe, the Middle East, and North America, with Europe and India relying on imports for nearly half of their gas supply.