Climate Change Performance Index 2025: An Overview

08 April 2025

The Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) 2025 report was released on November 20, 2024, at the annual UN Climate Conference in Baku, Azerbaijan. It is published by the think tanks, namely Germanwatch, NewClimate Institute, and the Climate Action Network International. The CCPI is an independent tool that monitors the climate mitigation efforts of 63 countries and the European Union (EU). Since its first annual publication in 2005, the CCPI has sparked significant public and political discussions in the assessed countries and internationally. It increases transparency in global climate politics and allows for the comparison of climate mitigation progress across countries.

Performance is evaluated in four areas: (i) Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions (40 per cent of overall score); (ii) Renewable Energy (20 per cent of overall score); (iii) Energy Use (20 per cent of overall score); and (iv) Climate Policy (20 per cent of overall score). Some 80 per cent of the assessment is based on quantitative data from International Energy Agency (IEA), PRIMAP, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and national GHG inventories submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Remaining 20 per cent of the assessment is based on own data from the annual survey of 450 experts worldwide, including energy experts from civil society, think tanks, and research institutions.

PRIMAP stands for Potsdam Real-time Integrated Model for the probabilistic Assessment of emission Paths. It is a framework used in climate studies to evaluate the emissions of GHGs, climate policies, and possibilities of future emissions. Broadly, PRIMAP can be considered as a set of tools and models used to synthesise earth system science and its uncertainties for international climate policy.

Overall Results of CCPI 2025

No country excelled enough in all categories to earn an overall very high rating, leaving the top three positions unfilled. Denmark continues to be the highest-ranked country. However, it does not achieve an overall very high rating.
The United Kingdom (UK), positioned sixth, and India, ranked tenth, are the only G20 countries classified as high performers. Fourteen G20 countries received low or very low ratings.
The G20 plays a crucial role in climate mitigation, as its members are responsible for more than 75 per cent of the global GHG emissions. The four lowest-ranked countries are Iran (67th), Saudi Arabia (66th), the United Arab Emirates (UAE) (65th), and Russia (64th)—all of which are among the world’s largest oil and gas producers.
South Korea (63rd), Russia (64th), and Saudi Arabia (66th) remain the lowest-performing nations within G20, receiving an overall very low rating.
The EU drops to the 17th place, maintaining an overall medium ranking. Sixteen EU countries are classified as high or medium performers with Denmark being the fourth and the Netherlands being the fifth, leading the overall rankings. Poland rises to the 47th rank due to an improved Climate Policy performance, while Finland falls 11 spots to the 37th, largely due to its weaker Climate Policy results. Unlike previous editions, no EU country received an overall very low rating, with Bulgaria being the worst performer at 50th.
Argentina (59th), which withdrew from COP29 and may exit the 2015 Paris Agreement, is one of this year’s biggest losers. Its newly elected president denies human-made climate change, going against scientific consensus.
China, the world’s largest emitter, ranks 55th, falling to a very low level. Despite promising plans, trends, and measures, the largest economy in Asia remains heavily reliant on coal and lacks adequate climate targets.
The US, the second-largest emitter, remains in the 57th place, among the very low performers.

Area-Wise Results

1. Greenhouse Gas Emissions Drastically reducing GHG emissions is the only way to prevent dangerous climate change. Global emissions must peak by 2025 and be reduced by half by 2030, compared to 2020 levels. The performance of all countries was surveyed in the CCPI’s four GHG emissions indicators.

Luxembourg, Sweden, and Chile lead the rankings with high ratings in this category, while Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE are the worst-performing countries.

The UK and India are the only G20 countries with an overall high rating. Seven G20 countries, including Canada, China, and Russia are among the very low performers, while most G20 nations receive low or very low ratings. Saudi Arabia continues to be the worst-performing G20 member-country.

As in previous years, the EU maintains a medium rating for its overall performance but drops to the 31st position. Luxembourg is the top-performing EU country, ranked 5th, while Sweden, Estonia, Denmark, Portugal, the Netherlands, Romania, and Slovakia also receive high ratings. Latvia is the only EU country to receive a very low rating in this category.

The majority of high-emission nations account for over 90 per cent of global GHG emissions.

2. Renewable Energy The rapid expansion of renewable energy offers a hopeful sign in the fight against climate change. In 2023, global renewable power capacity grew by a record 473 GW, surpassing the positive developments of the previous year. The International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that current climate policies and trends could lead to a nearly sufficient increase in renewables by 2030 to meet the goal of tripling global renewable capacity. A swift and complete phase-out of fossil fuels, including ending subsidies and halting new fossil fuel extraction licences, remains crucial.

The energy sector plays a significant role in countries’ GHG emissions. Moreover, the renewable energy ratings highlight considerable potential for further emission reductions through faster deployment of renewable energy.

Norway continues to receive a very high rating in this category, while for the first time, Sweden and Denmark also earn a very high rating. Iran, South Africa, and Algeria are at the bottom of the rankings.

Fourteen G20 countries are ranked low or very low, including Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Mexico. No G20 country receives a high rating in this category. Brazil, Indonesia, and China are the top performers, each earning an overall medium rating.

The EU’s performance remains the same as in the 2024 CCPI, with an overall medium rating. Following Norway, Sweden, and Denmark’s very high ratings, Latvia, Finland, the Netherlands, and Estonia receive a high rating. Malta and Slovakia perform very low.

3. Energy Use Global energy consumption growth accelerated in 2023, rising by 2.2 per cent, which is significantly faster than the average growth rate of 1.5 per cent per year from 2010 to 2019.

The Philippines is the only country to receive a very high rating in this category, followed by Nigeria, Colombia, and Pakistan. At the bottom of the rankings are the Republic of Korea, Canada, and the UAE.

Once again, seven G20 countries perform very low in this category. The UK, India, Mexico, and South Africa achieve high ratings, while all other G20 members are rated medium or low.

As in previous years, the EU earns a medium rating. Estonia, Romania, Lithuania, and Malta are the only EU countries performing at a high level, while Belgium, Sweden, Austria, Bulgaria, and Finland receive a very low rating.

4. Climate Policy Current climate targets and their implementation are insufficient to limit global warming to 1.5 °C. By February 2025, all countries had to update their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and address the ambition and implementation gaps to keep the 1.5 °C goal achievable.

The Climate Policy indicators in the CCPI 2025 evaluate not only national emissions policies and targets but also sectoral policies, targets, and their implementation.

Denmark is the only country to receive a high rating in this category, followed by Morocco, the Netherlands, and India. No country receives a high rating for national climate policy, while four countries/regions—Denmark, Colombia, the EU, and the UK—receive a high rating for international climate policy.

Seven G20 members receive a medium rating in this category. Twelve G20 countries are rated low or very low, with Turkey, Russia, and Japan being the worst performers.

Among EU countries, Denmark leads the Climate Policy ranking due to its strong national and international climate performance. Some 19 EU countries receive a low or very low rating, which is an increase of three from the previous year. Slovakia, Hungary, and Cyprus are the other EU countries with a very low performance.

CCPI on India

India ranks 10th in the 2025 CCPI report, staying among the highest performers. It has received a high ranking in the GHG Emissions and Energy Use categories, a medium ranking in Climate Policy, and a low ranking in Renewable Energy.
The growth-oriented approach to climate action is expected to persist or intensify, driven by increasing energy demand from industry and population growth, rather than prioritising decarbonisation of equity. This approach would vary significantly between states with local exceptions.
India’s per capita emissions stand at 2.9 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent (tCO₂eq), far below the global average of 6.6 tCO₂eq. Over the last decade, renewables have expanded rapidly, and India aims to play a leading role internationally in green energy. The CCPI country experts anticipate that India would meet its NDC, but they stress the importance of setting targets for sectors beyond emissions and electricity. Domestically, sectors such as transport, industry, housing, and water are regulated and the CCPI experts recommend including these sectors in the NDC as well.
In 2024, India made significant progress in renewable energy, particularly with large-scale solar power projects and the Rooftop Solar Scheme. However, CCPI experts call for more support for rooftop and off-grid solar systems. While energy efficiency standards have been introduced, coverage remains insufficient. India is also advancing in electric vehicle deployment, especially for two-wheelers.
Despite positive developments, India remains heavily dependent on coal with CCPI experts noting that its phase-out is progressing too slowly. As one of the 10 countries with the largest developed coal reserves, India plans to increase its production. Experts recommend revising the country’s NDC to set more ambitious emissions reduction targets across various sectors and accelerating the energy transition while ensuring it is just.
India, being the third-largest emitter of GHGs and one of the fastest-growing major economies, has committed to reaching net-zero emissions by 2070 and aims to achieve 500 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity by 2030. Although this target is not part of India’s NDCs, it continues to serve as a guiding reference in country’s energy planning. However, India’s climate progress challenges persist, with coal still powering over 70 per cent of its electricity, hindering net-zero goals. Land acquisition disputes, like in Nandgaon (Western India), also slow renewable expansion. To advance, India must phase down coal, streamline land policies for green projects, strengthen climate regulations across sectors, and boost energy efficiency, ensuring a just and sustainable transition.