Energy
Charted: $5 Trillion in Fossil Fuel Subsidies
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Charted: $5 Trillion in Fossil Fuel Subsidies (2010-2021)
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With energy consumption vital for life and business, governments often look to fossil fuel subsidies to make energy as affordable as possible.
These subsidies artificially reduce the price of fossil fuels and generally take two forms:
- Production subsidies occur when governments provide tax cuts or direct payments that reduce the cost of producing coal, oil, or gas.
- Consumption subsidies cut fuel prices for the end-user through price controls and other such measures.
Each year, governments around the world pour nearly half a trillion dollars into fossil fuel subsidies. This chart breaks down a decade of fossil fuel consumption subsidies by energy source using data from the International Energy Agency (IEA).
Breaking Down Fossil Fuel Consumption Subsidies
Since 2010, governments have spent over $5 trillion in fossil fuel consumption subsidies. The majority of this sum went towards making oil more affordable, as seen below:
Subsidies by Year (US$) | Oil | Electricity | Natural Gas | Coal | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2010 | $203.0B | $143.5B | $113.6B | $2.7B | $462.9B |
2011 | $263.7B | $147.2B | $100.4B | $3.6B | $514.0B |
2012 | $304.0B | $149.9B | $132.2B | $3.3B | $589.5B |
2013 | $300.0B | $132.8B | $119.1B | $1.7B | $553.6B |
2014 | $262.4B | $124.1B | $104.2B | $1.1B | $491.9B |
2015 | $147.3B | $119.2B | $83.6B | $1.5B | $351.5B |
2016 | $110.2B | $132.8B | $56.7B | $2.2B | $301.9B |
2017 | $153.5B | $136.2B | $65.2B | $2.7B | $357.6B |
2018 | $195.3B | $167.4B | $106.0B | $3.0B | $471.7B |
2019 | $134.2B | $124.8B | $51.0B | $2.2B | $312.2B |
2020 | $90.4B | $52.5B | $36.9B | $1.7B | $181.5B |
Total | $2,164.0B | $1,430.4B | $968.9B | $25.7B | $4,588.3B |
Fossil fuel subsidies fell to a decade low in 2020 as the pandemic hampered fuel consumption and triggered a nosedive in oil prices. However, after two years of straight declines, the IEA estimates that governments around the world spent $440 billion on subsidizing fossil fuel consumption over 2021, representing a 142% rise year-over-year.
Breaking down the subsidies by fuel, oil accounts for 43% or over $2 trillion of all subsidies between 2010 and 2020. Together, oil and electricity generated by fossil fuels received nearly 75% of all subsidies.
Despite growing support for the clean energy transition, the fossil fuel industry reaps the benefits of billions in subsidies annually—but why?
Why Do Governments Subsidize Fossil Fuels?
High energy prices can have rippling effects throughout an economy.
For consumers, heating and transportation become more expensive. And for producers who use energy and oil as inputs, the cost of goods and services goes up.
Often, governments turn to energy subsidies to keep prices down and encourage economic activity. Therefore, there’s a high cost to removing these subsidies, especially in developing countries where large parts of the population might lack access to affordable energy.
But fossil fuel subsidies can also have detrimental effects. By artificially lowering prices, they can encourage overconsumption of carbon-intense fuels, creating negative externalities through adverse environmental and health impacts. According to the International Renewable Energy Agency, these add up to an amount anywhere between $2.6 to $8.1 trillion globally.
Despite these disadvantages, fossil fuels remain an important part of the global energy mix, with continued support from governments. And with energy prices soaring, 2022 could be another year of billions in fossil fuel subsidies.
Energy
Ranked: Electric Vehicle Sales by Model in 2023
Today, electric vehicle sales make up 18% of global vehicle sales. Here are the leading models by sales as of August 2023.

Ranked: Electric Vehicle Sales by Model in 2023
Electric vehicle (EV) sales are gaining momentum, reaching 18% of global vehicle sales in 2023.
As new competitors bring more affordable options and new performance features, the market continues to mature as customers increasingly look to electric options.
This graphic ranks the top-selling EVs worldwide as of August 2023, based on data from CleanTechnica.
The Best Selling EVs in 2023 (Through August)
Below, we show the world’s best selling fully electric vehicles from January to August 2023:
Model | Country | Vehicles Sold (Jan-Aug 2023) |
---|---|---|
Tesla Model Y | 🇺🇸 U.S. | 772,364 |
Tesla Model 3 | 🇺🇸 U.S. | 364,403 |
BYD Atto 3 / Yuan Plus | 🇨🇳 China | 265,688 |
BYD Dolphin | 🇨🇳 China | 222,825 |
GAC Aion S | 🇨🇳 China | 160,693 |
Wuling HongGuang Mini EV | 🇨🇳 China | 153,399 |
GAC Aion Y | 🇨🇳 China | 136,619 |
VW ID.4 | 🇩🇪 Germany | 120,154 |
BYD Seagull | 🇨🇳 China | 95,202 |
As we can see, Tesla‘s Model Y still holds a comfortable lead over the competition with 772,364 units sold. That’s more than double the sales of the #2 top selling vehicle, Tesla’s Model 3 (364,403)
But it’s hard to ignore the rising prevalence of Chinese EVs. The next five best selling EV vehicles are Chinese, including three from BYD. The automaker’s Atto 3 (or Yuan Plus, depending on market), is being sold in various countries including Germany, the UK, Japan, and India.
Meanwhile, Chinese automaker GAC Group also had two models of its Aion EV brand make the rankings, with the Aion S selling 160,693 units so far.
Regional market strength is also clear. For Volkswagen’s ID.4 model (120,154 units sold), Europe and China account for the majority of sales.
Given growing cost efficiencies and changing consumer behavior, global EV sales are projected to make up half of new car sales globally by 2035, according to forecasts from Goldman Sachs.
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