As of 2022, only 17% of final energy usage is electricity. Heating, cooling, and transport make up the remainder. Converting those to use electricity, which in turn can be provided from renewable sources, is one of the quickest ways to decarbonisation. This approach is often referred to as "electrify everything".

...if we want to deeply decarbonize the energy system—by over 50 percent by 2030, and then 100 percent over the subsequent two decades—as all climate science is telling us we must do, "electrify everything" is actually the cheapest and most technically feasible way to achieve it. ¹

Challenges

To electrify everything we need to increase the electricity supply 3 or 4 times over, as well as build out new grid infrastructure to support that capacity. In turn this expansion will likely mean higher usage of fossil fuels to achieve.

Links

• Rewiring Australia