Countries | Climate Change Performance Index

Key results overall rating: Still no country made it to the top three ranks

The world map shows the aggregated results and overall performance of evaluated countries. Headline results include:

No country performs well enough in all index categories to achieve an overall very high rating in the index. Therefore, once again the first three ranks of the overall ranking remain empty.
G20 performance: From the G20 countries, this year, only the EU as a whole, along with the UK and India, rank among high performers while six G20 countries rank under very low
EU performance: Hungary and Slovenia supersede Poland as the worst performing EU country in this year’s index, all of them ranked as very low Seven EU countries (excluding the UK) and the EU as a whole rank under high performers this year. The EU regains six places.

GHG Emissions: Key developments – COVID-19 effects: Global emissions are declining

Owing to the COVID-19 crisis, the first half of 2020 brought a drastic 8.8% decrease in global GHG emissions. This is the largest half-year decrease in emissions ever recorded. Studies from May 2020 suggest a 4%–7% worldwide decline for the year, not considering successive waves of the pandemic.[1] Whether this emissions movement will continue over the coming years depends on how green countries’ recoveries are. For a 1.5°C world, emissions would need to continue to decline by this year’s rate.[2]

Key results: GHG Emissions rating

G20 performance:

No country’s performance is rated very high for all indicators in the GHG Emissions category while only France joins last year’s two high performing G20 countries India and the United Kingdom. Although India has one of the largest growth trends, per capita emissions stay at a comparatively low level, rated very high for their well-below 2°C compatibility.
Eight of the G20 countries rank as very low performing countries. Saudi Arabia, the worst performing G20 member has moved up from the last to the second last rank.

EU performance:

As last year, the EU is rated medium for its performance in the GHG Emissions category.
Five EU countries rank as high performers in this year’s GHG Emissions rating (excluding the UK). Cyprus, Ireland and Estonia are the worst performing EU countries, all with an overall very low rating in this category.

[1] UNEP (2020). Emission Gap Report 2020.

[2] Liu, Z., Ciais, P., Deng, Z. et al. Near-real-time monitoring of global CO2 emissions reveals the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Nat Commun 11, 5172 (2020)

Renewable Energy: Key developments – Renewable the only energy source to profit from COVID-19

Renewable energy continues to expand. In 2019, installed capacity grew by over 200 gigawatts – the largest annual growth to date. Wind and solar power have also been the cheapest sources of new electricity generation in 2020 in most parts of the world. The expected tipping point where new installed renewables capacity is cheaper than operating coal or natural gas power plants is expected in 2025.[1]

As it did on GHG emissions, the COVID-19 crisis had an impact on the renewable energy sector. Owing to lower energy demand and renewables being given an advantage in accessing the electricity market, these were the only sources increasing their share of the primary energy supply in 2020. Despite that, the sector had to cope with disrupted labour and supply chains.[2]

Key results: Renewable Energy rating

No country is rated very high for all indicators defining the Renewable Energy category. Since the energy sector contributes greatly to a country’s CO₂ emissions, the results of the Renewable Energy rating indicate that there is much room for improvement in mitigating emissions by means of accelerated deployment of renewable energy.

G20 performance:

Eleven of the G20 countries are rated low or very low for their performance in the Renewable Energy category. For those countries, current shares of renewable energy are rated comparatively low for their well-below 2°C compatibility; and their unambitious 2030 renewable energy targets are falling short of putting the G20 on a well-below 2°C compatible pathway.
Turkey and Indonesia joined Brazil and the United Kingdom as the only G20 countries rated high for their performance in the Renewable Energy category. While Brazil’s performance is based on the very high share of renewables in the energy mix, the United Kingdom and Turkey receive a very high rating for their positive trend in renewable development between 2013 and 2018.

EU performance:

The EU’s performance in the Renewable Energy category shows no improvements compared to last year. It still ranks among medium performers and is rated medium for all indicators defining the category.
Of the 18 countries rated high for their performance in the Renewable Energy category in this year’s index, 11 are EU countries (excluding the UK). Only Sweden receives a high rating for its 2030 target and is also the only EU country with a very high share of renewables. Poland and the Czech Republic are the worst performing EU countries, rated low for all indicators defining the Renewable Energy category.

[1] Hodges (2020). “Wind, Solar Are Cheapest Power Source In Most Places, BNEF Says”. Bloomberg [accessed 03.12.2020]

[2] REN21 (2020). Renewables Global Status Report

[3] IEA (2020), Energy Efficiency Report 2020

Energy Use: Key developments – Improvements in energy efficiency falling further behind

With total primary energy consumption still on the rise in 2019, the concept of energy efficiency is increasingly important. According to the IEA’s latest Energy Efficiency Report, improvements in energy efficiency are falling behind targets around the world. While investment in energy efficiency remained stable in 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic is expected to trigger a global recession, inducing spending cuts of over 10% in energy efficiency sectors[3].

G20 performance:

Only Mexico, Brazil, Indonesia, India and Germany out of the G20 are rated high for their performance in the Energy Use category. Mexico is among the few countries in this year’s CCPI that are rated very high for the well-below-2°C compatibility of their 2030 energy use target.
Five out of the eleven very low performers in the Energy Use rating are G20 countries.

EU performance:

As last year, the EU is rated medium for its performance in the Energy Use category.
Only two EU countries rank high in the Energy Use rating (excluding the UK).

* Increases in energy efficiency in its strict sense are complex to measure and would require a sector-by-sector approach. As currently there are no comparable data sources across all countries available, the CCPI evaluates the per capita energy use of a country to measure improvements in this category.

Climate Policy: Key developments – A year of contradiction and without sufficient targets

The political momentum on climate policy is growing despite COP26’s postponement, as several countries updated their NDCs. China, the world’s largest emitter, committed to a target of net zero by 2060, while Japan and the Republic of Korea even announced their aim to become carbon neutral by 2050. Despite these movements, some developments have gone the opposite way. A day after the US presidential election in November, the US formally withdrew from the Paris Agreement. While some countries have already submitted their NDC improvements, numerous large emitters have yet to do so. Even the goals of net zero by 2050 or 2060 from Asia are insufficient for a 1.5°C world.

Key results: Climate Policy rating

While a few countries have a very high rating for their international climate policy performance, no country reaches an overall very high rating for the Climate Policy category.

G20 performance:

As last year nine of the G20 countries are rated low or very low for their performance in the Climate Policy category. South Africa was able to improve to a medium rating, while Saudi Arabia joins the low performers.
Five G20 countries rank under high performers in this year’s Climate Policy rating with France now scoring only medium.

EU performance:

The EU improves by eight ranks in the Climate Policy rating and is rated high especially for its international climate policy.
Ten EU countries rank under high performers in this year’s Climate Policy rating, with five EU countries leading the ranking (excluding the UK). Bulgaria and Hungary are the worst performing EU countries, both with an overall very low rating in the Climate Policy category.