Bioenergy  is the overlooked giant of the renewable energy field and it would have the biggest growth in renewable resources between 2018 and 2023, according to the International Energy Agency’s latest report released on Monday.

About 40% of the global energy consumption growth in the next five years will be met by renewables and it will account for almost one-third of the global electricity generation by 2023, the market forecast said. India, after China and the US, is the third largest growth market for solar PV capacity addition.

“While the growth in solar PV and wind is set to continue in the electricity sector, bioenergy remains the largest source of renewable energy because of its widespread use in heat and transport, sectors in which other renewables currently play a much smaller role, the report said. The report blamed weaker policy support and additional barriers to deployment for the slow expansion of renewables in the transport and heat sectors.

Modern bioenergy’s “share in the world’s total renewables consumption is about 50% today, in other words as much as hydro, wind, solar and all other renewables combined,” said Fatih Birol, the IEA’s executive director. “We expect modern bioenergy will continue to lead the field, and has huge prospects for further growth. But right policies and rigorous sustainability regulations will be essential to meet its full potential,” he said.

The focus on bioenergy is part of the IEA’s analysis of “blind spots” of the energy system – issues that are critical to the evolution of the energy sector but that receive less attention than they deserve – such as the impact of air conditioners on electricity demand, or the growing impact of petrochemicals on global oil demand.