Engineering and construction firm executives say the historic climate change pact reached on Dec. 12 in Paris could continue the power sector’s shift away from traditional fossil fuel projects and create new markets in developing countries.

The agreement reached by nearly 200 nations at the U.N. COP21 conference to reduce emissions and hold the globe’s temperature increase due to climate change to 1.5° C is tougher than observers had anticipated, or even hoped for. Scientists have said the global temperature must not increase more than 2° C in order for the worst effects of climate change to be avoided. Construction industry executives have watched the negotiations carefully, because, they say, they will have far-reaching ramifications—from energy-efficiency rules to the types of projects that are built.