According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), demand for energy at the global level is expected to be 40% higher in 2030 than it was in 2007. The IEA also states that 90% of this increased demand will be attributable to the emergence of developing economies.

Fossil resources, which account for most of the energy used today, are in limited supply, even though new extraction technologies are being developed. These resources are also geographically concentrated: more than half of the world’s crude oil reserves are located in the Middle East, while a third of the world’s coal is in the United States and a quarter of its natural gas reserves are in Russia.

The use of these fossil resources results in the release of CO₂, a greenhouse gas that is widely considered to be responsible for climate change. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) estimates that the average increase in temperature on Earth over the course of the 21^st century will be between 2 and 6°C if no specific actions are taken to reduce the emission of CO₂.