INTERNATIONAL ENERGY AGENCY (Syllabus: GS Paper 3 – Economy)

Context: Recently, the challenges and opportunities related to meeting the increasing demand for minerals essential for clean energy technologies were prominently discussed during the inaugural IEA Critical Minerals and Clean Energy Summit in Paris, France.

Key points

• Critical minerals include copper, lithium, nickel and cobalt, which are essential components in such rapidly growing clean energy technologies.
• Between 2017 and 2022, demand from the energy sector for lithium tripled.
• There was a 70 per cent increase in cobalt demand and a rise of 40 percent in nickel demand too, as per the IEA estimates.

International Energy Agency

• About: The IEA is at the heart of global dialogue on energy, providing authoritative analysis, data, policy recommendations, and real-world solutions to help countries provide secure and sustainable energy for all.
• Located: Paris
• Established: In 1974
• Members: 30 member countries, 8 association countries, and 3 accession countries
• India became an Associate Member of IEA in 2017.
• Four main areas of focus: Energy security, economic development, environmental awareness and engagement worldwide.
• Reports published by IEA: World Energy Outlook, World Energy Balances, Energy Technology Perspectives, World Energy Statistics and Net Zero by 2050.