World Energy Issues Monitor 2020: Decoding New Signals of Change

ISSUES MONITOR 2020: DECODING NEW SIGNALS OF CHANGE
The annual World Energy Issues Monitor provides unique insight into what energy policymakers, CEOs and leading experts identify as Critical Uncertainties and Action Priorities. New this year, the Issues Monitor also provides readers with the views of the individual customer, detailing their perceptions of their role in the overall energy system. The Issues Monitor report includes a global issues map, 58 country maps, and six regional maps, as well as perspectives from Future Energy Leaders (FEL) and energy innovators.
GLOBAL PERSPECTIVES
The 2020 global map incorporates all survey responses, representing the views of over 3,000 energy leaders from 104 countries. In this era of transition defined by decentralisation, digitalisation and decarbonisation, energy leaders must pay attention to many different signals of change and distinguish key issues from the noise. The Issues Monitor identifies shifting patterns of connected issues shaping energy transitions.
A NEW PULSE
The focus for the 2010s was about trying to automate and upgrade the energy system and set targets to move the energy transition forward. Digitalisation accelerated the transition of all sectors towards a more customer-centric environment. New policies and regulations were introduced to facilitate this transition and empower consumers. As a result, the 2020s may very well be about realising those targets through a transition from activism to action.
TREND TRACKING: CCS
In comparing response from the Oil & Gas sector in 2015 with 2019, we found that almost half of respondents identified Carbon Capture & Storage (CCS) as a high impact issue in 2019, up from about a third in 2015. CCS is increasingly being viewed as an essential option for continued hydrocarbon use although governmental support is needed to enable scalability and cost effectiveness.
A DIFFERENCE IN OPINION: NUCLEAR
Opinions remain polarised but in many European countries, nuclear power is increasingly recognised as a carbon-free energy source and potentially an integral part of the future energy mix. In December 2019, the European Commission set a target of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. There is qualified support among energy leaders to include nuclear energy to help create a carbon neutral continent and enable a just energy transition.