US drove one third of global CO2 emissions rise in 2025 as coal use jumped 10 percent

A new report from the Energy Institute finds that global energy-related carbon emissions rose 1.1 percent in 2025, reaching 35,806 million metric tons. The United States accounted for more than a third of that increase, as higher gas prices pushed power producers back to coal. US coal consumption jumped 10 percent last year, reversing a decade long trend of declining emissions in North America. Renewable generation grew 9.1 percent globally, led by a 30 percent surge in solar. But electricity demand rose 3 percent year on year, driven by electric vehicles, data centers, and artificial intelligence, outpacing supply growth. China's emissions rose 0.7 percent, Europe's by 0.5 percent. Global oil consumption hit 103 million barrels per day, up 1.3 percent.