Global Energy & Utilities Digital Week (GEUDW)
Dubai, UAE – 14 June 2020: Informa Markets is using its international reach to bring thought leaders and decision makers from across the globe together to launch Global Energy & Utilities Digital Week (GEUDW), an interactive digital platform established to provide solutions for governments and companies to meet the energy and utilities needs of populations and customers during and post Covid-19 pandemic.
The inaugural digital week from 10-13 August will harness Informa Market’s global network of 500,000 + energy professionals to provide leading content, debate and solutions for companies and clients across the energy supply-chain in a safe environment.
The key theme of the week will be ‘Powering the world into the new energy era,’ focusing on the opportunities and challenges of successfully implementing clean energy programmes and improving efficiency of conventional power resources in the post Covid-19 world.
Energy transition
Renewable energy capacity accounted for almost three quarters, 72 per cent, of new installed global power capacity in 2019, according to the latest data from the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena).
According to the ‘Renewable Capacity Statistics 2020’, the total installed capacity of renewable energy increased by 7.6 per cent in 2019, with 176GW of new clean energy capacity installed during the year.
The new installed renewable energy capacity increased the clean energy share of all power capacity to 34.7 per cent, up from 33.3 per cent by the end of 2018, according to the report.
However, if the targets set out in the Paris Climate Accord are to be achieved and the global average temperature increase kept below 2c, much more needs to be done.
The challenge of successfully delivering on targets to reduce carbon emissions, improve efficiency and increase the deployment of renewable energy has become much greater in 2020 with the Covid-19 outbreak.
Economic challenge
Global economic growth is likely to fall much further than in the 2008-9 financial crisis, with the latest forecast from the IMF predicting a contraction of the global economy by -3 per cent. The disruption to supply chains and fall in demand for services and products across is resulting in an unprecedented challenge for governments, energy companies and utilities across the world.
However, while the impact of the Covid-19 outbreak has created onerous short-term challenges, it is also providing an opportunity for the public and private sectors to prioritise sustainable policies and green initiatives to assist and spur on the recovery.
Global opportunity
Irena estimates that renewable energy could spur global GDP (gross domestic product) gains of $98trillion by 2050, with a global concerted effort to develop clean energy and decarbonise away from fossil fuels potentially adding an additional 2.4 per cent to global GDP between now and 2050.
Global Energy & Utilities Digital Week will provide an opportunity for the public and private sector to come together to create a blueprint for succeeding in the energy transition in the post-pandemic world.
The content rich agenda features four days of interactive webinars, market outlooks and podcasts to provide the industry with the essential information needed to adapt to the new reality.
