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Increasing the development and diffusion of climate change mitigation technologies on a globalscale is critical to reaching net-zero emissions. We analyse over a quarter million high-value inventions patented from 1995 to 2017 by inventors located in 170 countries in all major climate change mitigation technologies. Our analysis shows an annual growth rate of 10 percent from 1995 to 2012 in these high-value inventions. Yet, from 2013 to 2017, the growth rate of these inventions has fallen by around 6 percent annually, likely driven by declining fossil fuel prices, low carbon prices, and increasing technological maturity for some technologies, such as solar PV. Invention has remained highly concentrated geographically over the last decade, with inventors in Germany, Japan, and the US accounting for more than half of global inventions, and the top 10 countries for almost 90%. Except for inventors in China, most middle-income economies have not caught up and remain less specialised in lowcarbon technologies than high-income economies. This underscores the need for more technology transfers to low-and middle-income economies, where most of the future CO2 emissions increases are set to occur.

This work is a product of the staff of The World Bank and the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR) with external contributions. The findings, analysis and conclusions expressed in this document do not necessarily reflect the views of any individual partner organization of The World Bank, its Board of Directors, or the governments they represent.Although the World Bank and GFDRR make reasonable efforts to ensure all the information presented in this document is correct, its accuracy and integrity cannot be guaranteed. Use of any data or information from this document is at the user's own risk and under no circumstances shall the World Bank, GFDRR or any of its partners be liable for any loss, damage, liability or expense incurred or suffered which is claimed to result from reliance on the data contained in this document. The boundaries, colors, denomination, and other information shown in any map in this work do not imply any judgment on the part of The World Bank concerning the legal status of any territory or the endorsement or acceptance of such boundaries.

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