The challenge we face, the breakthroughs we need | Rolls-Royce

Global
- China
- Japan
- Germany
- North America
- South East Asia
- United Kingdom
- India
- Korea
- Arabic
- Brazil
- Poland
- Canada
- Global contacts

We develop and deliver complex power and propulsion solutions.

For more than 100 years we have been at the forefront of innovation. Helping to power, protect and connect the modern world.

About

Create your future with us

Help us deliver better power for our changing world.

We develop and deliver complex power and propulsion solutions for safety-critical applications in the air, at sea and on land.

Our products and service packages enable our customers to connect people, societies, cultures and economies together.

Products & Services

Doing more with less

We have a fundamental role in meeting the environmental and societal opportunities and challenges that the world faces.

Sustainability

News centre

Updates and news from around the Rolls-Royce businesses.

The pathway to net zero by 2050

To avoid the worst effects of climate change, we must limit global warming to 1.5°C.

An average global temperature rise above that would create risks that the global economy cannot withstand.

To hit this target, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has said humanity must halve its carbon emissions over the next decade, do so again during the 2030s, and yet again during the 2040s, to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.

Sustainable power in a post-pandemic world

In 2020, efforts to deal with climate change had to contend with the more immediate crisis of the unprecedented loss of life and livelihoods caused by Covid-19.

Yet the threats posed by global warming haven’t gone away. Countries across the world will need to take steps to accelerate sustainable and resilient development as their economies emerge in the wake of the pandemic.

The dramatic drop in energy demand caused by the effective shutdown of large parts of the global economy has highlighted the scale of the challenge. Carbon emissions are predicted to fall this year as a result of Covid-19.

To keep the average global temperature rise to 1.5°C, the world would need to replicate these emissions reductions for many years to come. Yet the profound socio-economic costs that have resulted from measures to combat Covid-19 demonstrate that this is not a viable or realistic way to get to net zero.

Transforming the pillars of our global economy

Achieving net zero will require the transformation of core systems that support our global economy.

Power generation, transport and the built environment will be key. These are the very sectors in which reducing emissions is hardest. Together they represent 73% of annual global CO₂ emissions in 2020.

Built-in emissions

Cities, infrastructure and buildings, and the energy required to heat and power them, contribute 10% of global CO₂ emissions today.

The majority of the world’s population lives in cities and that is projected to rise to 70% by 2050. With predicted population growth and urbanisation, particularly in developing regions and nations, the proportion of total emissions that come from the built environment is expected to grow still further.

Zero carbon electricity

The provision of heating, electricity and power contribute almost 40% of global CO₂ emissions today, primarily from the extraction and combustion of coal and oil.

That’s why it is important that by 2050, all of our electricity is generated from zero-carbon sources. We need to hit 65% this decade. Getting to 50-60% shouldn’t be too difficult technically. Reaching 90% is feasible but will be costly, and achieving 100% will be difficult, both technically and economically.

Moving away from fossil fuels

Land, sea and air transport contribute 23% of global CO₂ emissions.

Air travel contributes 3% of emissions today but is expected to increase in proportion as other transport modes decarbonise faster. Transport has historically been powered mainly by fossil fuels. Alternatives such as hydrogen and electrification are becoming established for land-based transport. For aviation and shipping, the challenge lies in moving away from carbon-intensive fuels without comprising on connectivity, affordability and practicality.

We will help deliver net zero

Technological solutions to decarbonise these central pillars of our economy are at hand.

As a major global power group, we will use our capabilities to drive emissions down across these and other economic sectors. In an environment of both policy and public support, we have the potential to pioneer the game-changing technologies to help deliver a net-zero carbon future.

Downloads

Leading the transition to net zero carbon – executive summary

pdf - 2.6MB

Download Leading the transition to net zero carbon – executive summary

Leading the transition to net zero carbon – full report

pdf - 5.1MB

Download Leading the transition to net zero carbon – full report