Acceleration in energy intensity improvement in 2019 (-2.1%, faster than over 2000-2018)

Global energy intensity (total energy consumption per unit of GDP) improved by 2.1% in 2019, i.e. faster than its historical trend (-1.6%/year on average between 2000 and 2018 and -1.2% in 2018). However, this improvement remains far from the 3.5%/year decrease required to achieve the 2°C scenario.
Energy intensity levels and trends differ widely across world regions, reflecting differences in economic structure and energy efficiency achievements.
China’s energy intensity reduction continued in 2019 (-2.8%, close to its historical trend): in 2019, its energy intensity stood 44% below its 2000 level, still 17% above the world average.
Since 2000, the USA and the EU have cut their energy intensity by more than 30% thanks to energy efficiency efforts, to changes in the power mix (higher share of renewables and gas) and to a lesser extent to a structural shift toward less energy-intensive industry branches and the growing share of services in the GDP. Energy intensity in the EU was 33% below the world average in 2019, with reductions accelerating in 2019 compared to historical trends.
The high energy intensity in the CIS, the Middle East, China and some developing Asian countries is explained by the dominance of energy-intensive industries, commodity exporting-based economies and low energy prices that do not encourage energy efficiency. In 2019, energy intensity decreased in Asia (especially in India, Japan and South Korea), in Canada and in Mexico. It stayed stable in Russia (+0.4%, almost no change since 2010), where it remains twice as high as the global average, and increased in most Middle East countries.