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International Energy Agency (IEA) Executive Director Fatih Birol said the agency aims to secure an international commitment at COP31 to raise electricity's share of global energy consumption to 35 percent by 2035. The conference will be hosted and chaired by Türkiye in Antalya.

Birol told Anadolu Agency that many countries are already prepared to join the initiative, which has been presented publicly as "35 by 35", and that the agency would monitor how nations perform against the goal.

Electricity demand outpacing overall energy growth

Birol said global energy demand is rising quickly but electricity demand is growing three times faster than total energy demand, a shift he said points to the start of a new era in the global energy system.

Recalling that he declared the world had entered the age of electricity roughly two years ago, Birol said consumption is gaining further momentum from artificial intelligence, electric vehicles and air conditioning systems. He said this transformation requires governments and energy companies to reshape their investment decisions and that electricity use will grow faster in the coming years, so countries must take steps in line with that trend.

Antalya summit tied to a lasting target

Birol described the COP gatherings as platforms that bring world leaders together to try to settle major climate policy decisions. He said Türkiye's COP31 should be remembered for a concrete, lasting target, and that the Antalya summit should produce an international declaration as well as being well organized.

He said he had held meetings with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, after which a common goal emerged to raise electricity's share of total energy consumption worldwide. Electricity currently accounts for 23 percent of global energy consumption, he said, and the aim is to lift that to 35 percent by 2035.

"If many countries, tens or hundreds of countries, sign up to this in Antalya, I think it will be a tremendous success and will send a serious signal to global markets and investors," Birol said.

He said the electricity goal would give a strong direction for the future of the global energy system if it becomes a broadly backed international commitment. "The future of energy in the world is electricity. The place where this contract is made, where it is envisioned, will be Antalya. For years everyone will associate Antalya with this target," he said.

IEA tasked with yearly monitoring

Birol said the "35 by 35" target would speed up countries' existing energy transition trends, and that an international mechanism is planned to track how the commitment is implemented. The governments of Türkiye and Australia are expected to assign the IEA an annual monitoring and reporting role, covering how much electricity's share of global energy consumption rises each year and how countries are progressing toward the goal.

"Each year we will be given this task to announce which country did how much and how much it failed to do. We will carry out this duty and inform world public opinion about which country achieved what, which failed, and which countries need support," he said.

Birol said the initiative is already drawing significant international interest and recalled that the target was announced to world public opinion at a United Nations meeting in New York, attended by Emine Erdoğan. Many countries are ready to sign the commitment, he said, and implementing it after adoption will matter just as much.

"I hope this commitment will be signed and then put into effect. Türkiye, Australia and the International Energy Agency will closely follow it," he said.

AI, electric vehicles and air conditioning drive demand

Birol said the spread of electricity use lies at the root of the global energy system's transformation, and that three new factors are accelerating demand growth. The first is artificial intelligence, as the data centres behind AI applications consume large amounts of electricity and add a new source of growth to global demand.

Electric vehicles are the second factor. Birol said sales worldwide have risen rapidly in recent years. "Five years ago, only 5 percent of the cars sold in the world were electric. This year it is 32 percent. That also gives additional strength to electricity demand growth," he said.

The third factor is air conditioning. Birol said rising global temperatures are lifting demand for cooling systems, which supports electricity consumption. These three developments have become the basic drivers of the age of electricity, he said, and energy infrastructure must keep pace with the growing demand.

Grids are the biggest test

Birol said the most important challenge facing the global energy sector is not electricity generation but delivering the power produced to points of consumption. Building new power plants alone is not enough, he said, and the increase in generation capacity must be backed by strong transmission and distribution infrastructure.

"The biggest test ahead, in my view, is not building power plants. We do that as a world, but taking it to homes and factories through grids. There is a grid problem in the world right now. There is also a mobilisation to overcome this grid problem. I see this as the biggest test," he said.

Birol said he had worked on preparations for previous climate summits in the United Arab Emirates, Azerbaijan and Brazil, and that COP31 being held in Türkiye carries particular importance. Interest in climate issues has declined somewhat worldwide in recent years, he said, and the Antalya meeting could raise it again.

"I have worked for many COPs, for many countries. But this year, of course, first of all Türkiye is my own country. That is why I want it to be very successful. Interest in climate has also fallen a bit in the last few years. I see and feel that with this Antalya meeting it will rise again. Contributing a little to that, contributing to my country and the world excites me greatly. I await Antalya with great curiosity. I hope good results will come," he said.

Key takeaways

• The IEA aims for an international commitment at COP31 in Antalya to lift electricity's share of global energy consumption to 35 percent by 2035, up from 23 percent now.
• Fatih Birol said many countries are already prepared to join the "35 by 35" initiative.
• Türkiye and Australia are expected to task the IEA with annual monitoring and reporting on countries' progress.
• Electricity demand is growing three times faster than total energy demand, driven by AI data centres, electric vehicles and air conditioning, while grids remain the biggest challenge.