Government energy spending has remained at historically high levels even as the emergency measures triggered by the recent global crisis are being rolled back. While projections for future spending were revised downward in 2025 due to changes in national policy, according to the authors of the newly released report, total outlays remain more than twice the levels seen at the end of the last decade.
The document states that “Government spending on energy has doubled since 2019” and highlights that “Direct financial support for energy peaked during the previous energy crisis and remains at historically high levels.”
This means that although governments are reducing the massive temporary payments they made to help people pay their utility bills during the peak of the crisis, they are still spending far more on energy than they did five years ago. Instead of just providing quick cash for bills, a larger share of public money is now going toward long-term goals like making homes more energy-efficient and building the infrastructure needed to generate and transport electricity.
The report “State of Energy Policy 2026” was published by the International Energy Agency in France in April 2026. It was prepared by the World Energy Outlook team under the direction of Laura Cozzi, the IEA’s Chief Energy Modeller.
