Global Energy Outlook

The Global Energy Outlook (GEO) provides a unique “apples-to-apples” comparison of global energy projections by leading international organizations and corporations. It provides insight into the range of potential futures for energy at global, regional, and national levels, with projections varying due to distinct assumptions regarding energy technologies and public policies. For example, what is the outlook for coal consumption in China, oil consumption in India, and solar power in the United States under different policy pathways? The GEO includes projections and historical data from BP, BloombergNEF (BNEF), the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), ExxonMobil, Equinor, the International Energy Agency (IEA), the Institute of Energy Economics of Japan (IEEJ), the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), and Shell.

Read the 2021 GEO Report, watch the GEO launch event, or read the press release.

Our 2021 Global Energy Outlook is accompanied by an interactive data tool, which allows users to visualize, compare, and download harmonized data from each projection:

The Global Energy Outlook data tool allows users to explore harmonized data and projections from the world’s leading energy organizations. You can compare across or within outlooks using the following tools:

Measurement: Select which metric you want to visualize, such as primary energy consumption, CO2 emissions, electricity generation, and more.

Data series: Select how you’d like to compare the data. Select “outlooks and scenarios” to see projections from each organization on your topic of interest. Select “Regions,” “Sectors,” or “Fuels” to compare across regions, sectors, or fuels within your chosen outlook.

Filters: Find the data you're looking for by filtering between different outlooks, regions, fuel types, and sectors. Note that these options will change depending on your chosen Data Series.

For a detailed description of our harmonization process, please see:

Prepared for the Tenth IEA IEF OPEC Symposium on Energy Outlooks:

• Introductory Paper: A Comparison of Recent IEA and OPEC Outlooks (2020)
• Comparative Analysis Findings (slides)

Prepared for the Ninth IEA IEF OPEC Symposium on Energy Outlooks:

• Introductory Paper: A Comparison of Recent IEA and OPEC Outlooks (2019)
• Comparative Analysis Findings (slides)
• Global Energy Outlooks Comparison Methods: 2019 Update
• Read the 2019 GEO Report, watch the GEO launch event, or read the press release.

Prepared for the Eighth IEA IEF OPEC Symposium on Energy Outlooks:

• Introductory Paper: A Comparison of Recent IEA and OPEC Outlooks (2018)
• Global Energy Outlooks Comparison Methods: 2018 Update

Prepared for the Seventh IEA IEF OPEC Symposium on Energy Outlooks:

• Introductory Paper: A Comparison of Recent IEA and OPEC Outlooks (2017)
• Presentation: 7th IEA-IEF-OPEC Outlook Symposium: Comparative Analysis Findings
• Global Energy Outlooks Comparison Methods: 2017 Update

Prepared for the Sixth IEA IEF OPEC Symposium on Energy Outlooks:

• Introductory Paper: A Comparison of Recent IEA and OPEC Outlooks (2016)
• Global Energy Outlook 2015

Prepared for the Fifth IEA IEF OPEC Symposium on Energy Outlooks:

• Introductory Paper: A Comparison of Recent IEA and OPEC Outlooks (2015)
• Global Energy Outlooks Comparison: Methods and Challenges (2015)

Prepared for the Fourth IEA IEF OPEC Symposium on Energy Outlooks:

• Introductory Paper: A Comparison of Recent IEA and OPEC Outlooks (2014)

Grubler, A. Energy Transitions. in Encyclopedia of Earth (Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment, 2008).

International Energy Agency. IEA World Energy Statistics and Balances. (2018).

Bloomberg New Energy Finance. New Energy Outlook 2018. (2018).

BP. Energy Outlook 2018. (2018).

Equinor. Energy Perspectives. (2018).

ExxonMobil. Outlook for Energy: A View to 2040. (2018).*

International Energy Agency. World Energy Outlook 2018. (2018).

Institute of Energy Economics, Japan. Outlook 2019: Energy transition and a thorny path for 3E challenges. (2018).

OPEC. World Oil Outlook. (2018).

Shell. Sky Scenario. (2018).

US Energy Information Administration. International Energy Outlook. (2017).

*Resources for the Future (RFF) has Exxon Mobil Corporation’s express permission to use data from its 2018 Outlook for Energy. The data from the 2018 Outlook for Energy incorporated into RFF’s tool may not be otherwise used or reproduced without the permission of Exxon Mobil Corporation.