≈ 107 million tonnes emitted every day
Global fossil fuel CO₂ emissions hit a record high in 2024 at 37.4 billion tonnes — up 0.8% from 2023. The IEA projects emissions may peak before 2030 as clean energy scales up, but a confirmed peak has not yet occurred.
Source: IEA Global Electricity Review 2025 (2024 data)
⚡ Why does solar seem low?
News headlines often report installed capacity (how much power a source could produce at peak). But what matters for the grid is actual generation — how many kilowatt-hours are produced over a full year.
Solar panels only generate when the sun shines, giving them a capacity factor of ~15–25%. Hydro and wind run far more hours per day. That said, solar is the fastest growing source globally and is projected to overtake wind in generation share by the late 2020s as battery storage matures.
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