The global green economy, encompassing renewable energy, climate-resilient infrastructure, sustainable transport and circular supply-chains has already surpassed US$5 trillion in annual value and is projected to exceed US$7 trillion by 2030, according to a new report jointly published by the World Economic Forum (WEF) and Boston Consulting Group (BCG).
The report, titled Already a Multi-Trillion-Dollar Market: A CEO Guide to Growth in the Green Economy, identifies the “green economy” as one of the fastest-growing sectors globally, second only to technology over the past decade.
According to the report, companies generating green revenues have enjoyed significantly stronger performance than their traditional peers. Between 2020 and 2024, green revenues grew at roughly twice the pace of conventional revenues across thousands of publicly traded firms worldwide.
Additionally, firms where more than half of revenues derive from green business lines saw market valuation premiums of 12–15 %, together with lower cost of capital.
A major enabler of this growth is the dramatic reduction in cost for clean technologies. Since 2010, the average cost of solar photovoltaics and lithium-ion batteries has fallen by approximately 90 %, while offshore wind costs have dropped by about 50 %.
As a result, an estimated 55 % of global emissions can now be abated using cost-competitive solutions, with a further 20 % potentially addressed at modest cost premiums under favorable policy regimes.
While energy and transport remain core pillars of green growth, the report highlights that a broad array of sectors are accelerating rapidly, including circular economy solutions, sustainable agriculture, methane and carbon management technologies, circular waste treatment, climate forecasting and resilient infrastructure.
Adaptation and resilience technologies, such as advanced cooling systems, flood-management infrastructure and climate-resilient construction, now account for over 20 % of all climate-related global investments.
This diversification underscores a wider transformation: the “green economy” is no longer limited to renewable energy or EVs, but spans entire supply chains, industrial materials, services and resilience infrastructure.
The report draws attention to the growing shift in the centre of green-tech innovation and deployment. In 2024, China invested an estimated $659 billion in clean energy, more than 50 % above the next largest investor globally.
China now leads in renewable capacity additions, battery manufacturing, solar and wind deployment, and holds a dominant share of green-tech patents. As such, the world’s supply chains for low-carbon technologies are increasingly shaped by Chinese industrial scale and coordination.
However, the report emphasizes that the path ahead remains open for other regions and economies. With policy support, early-mover advantage and strategic investments, firms worldwide can capture substantial value, not just in clean energy, but across adaptation, circularity, sustainable materials and green services.
To guide business decision-makers, the report presents a “CEO guidebook,” based on 14 case studies from members of the WEF’s Alliance of CEO Climate Leaders. The analysis finds that companies succeeding in green markets typically combine three essential attributes:
A clear purpose and value proposition, beyond simply being “green,” firms must deliver products and services with compelling economic value.
According to Patrick Herhold, Managing Director and Senior Partner at BCG and co-author of the report, “With $2 trillion in growth expected in the next five years there are plenty more opportunities for companies to harvest.”
Similarly, Pim Valdre, Head of Climate and Nature Economy at the WEF, described the green transition as one of “the biggest growth opportunities of our time,” contributing not just to emissions reduction but to job creation, resilience, innovation and sustainable prosperity.
The findings come at a crucial moment, as many countries, particularly in the Global South seek pathways for sustainable development without repeating the fossil-fuel driven industrialization of previous decades.
The diversification into green services, circular materials, adaptation solutions and sustainable infrastructure offers new avenues for growth and resilience. As shown in other recent research by BCG, these opportunities span critical energy-transition minerals, green-materials manufacturing, and eco-services including green finance, sustainable transport, and climate risk management.
For governments, unlocking this potential will require aligned policy frameworks: long-term decarbonization targets, green public procurement, streamlined permitting, de-risking instruments, supportive tax regimes and harmonized standards, all measures the report identifies as critical enablers.
Despite macroeconomic uncertainties, regulatory bottlenecks, and varying regional momentum, the report argues that a large part of the global emissions reduction potential can already be unlocked at competitive cost.
Yet, deeper decarbonization technologies such as low-carbon hydrogen, carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) remain cost-disadvantaged and will likely require sustained public-private support and policy coordination to scale.
Nevertheless, with clean energy costs plummeting, capital flowing, and innovation accelerating, the green economy is rapidly shifting from promise to mainstream. As the report concludes, companies and economies that act now stand to benefit, potentially capturing a sizeable share of a multi-trillion-dollar market that may well define the global economy of the 2030s.
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