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36075 Electricity is only one part of total energy – decarbonizing electricity is only one step towards a low-carbon energy system untitled-reusable-block-229 wp_block publish <!-- wp:columns --> <div class="wp-block-columns"><!-- wp:column --> <div class="wp-block-column"><!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Solar and wind generation are growing quickly across the world. This is, of course, good news as we try to shift our energy systems away from fossil fuels.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Such progress often makes the headlines. Here is one example from this year:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>→ <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/clean-energy-fossil-fuels-national-grid-2019-statistics-latest-a9266116.html">More UK energy is coming from clean sources than fossil fuels for the first time ever, National Grid announces</a> <em>(Independent, 2020)</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>At first glance, we might think that we are edging close to a fossil-free energy system.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Unfortunately, many of&nbsp; these headlines are misleading.{ref}The headline in <em>The Independent</em> newspaper claims that in the UK more energy came from low-carbon sources than fossil fuels in 2019. As we see from <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/sub-energy-fossil-renewables-nuclear?country=~GBR">this chart</a> – which looks at the breakdown of the UK energy mix – almost 80% of the UK’s energy came from fossil fuels, and only 20% from ‘clean sources’. The author probably meant to speak only of ‘UK electricity’, which as my post here illustrates, is not the same thing.{/ref} &nbsp;The Independent made the mistake of using the terms <em>electricity</em> and <em>energy</em> interchangeably, when they are actually not the same thing.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Electricity (or ‘power’) is just one component of total energy consumption. The other two components being transport and heating.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>When we see headlines about our progress on decarbonization, the quoted figures often refer to electricity. Many countries are making progress on clean electricity, but progress on energy as a whole is much slower.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Let’s compare the breakdown of the global energy and electricity mix – these are shown in the chart.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We see a large difference between the share that comes from low-carbon sources. Nuclear and renewables account for more than one-third (36.7%) of global <em>electricity</em>. But they account for less than half that figure (15.7%) of the global <em>energy</em> mix. This is because the other elements of the energy demand – transport and heating – rely much more heavily on fossil fuels.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>But there is another aspect to consider. The fact that transport and heating are harder to decarbonize, clean electricity will become ever-more important. Many solutions rely on us electrifying other parts of the energy system – such as shifting to electric vehicles. The <em>International Energy Agency</em>, for example, <a href="https://www.iea.org/reports/global-ev-outlook-2020">projects that by 2030</a>, global electricity demand for electric vehicles will increase five- to eleven-fold from levels in 2019. If we are to reap the climate benefits of electric vehicles, this electricity needs to be as low-carbon as possible.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>But when we see headlines on progress in decarbonizing the electricity sector we need to remember that it is just one part of the energy story. If we don’t, we risk falling into a false sense of progress and let leaders, governments and companies boast targets that are not nearly ambitious enough.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --></div> <!-- /wp:column --> <!-- wp:column --> <div class="wp-block-column"><!-- wp:image {"id":35659,"sizeSlug":"large"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://owid.cloud/app/uploads/2020/08/Global-energy-vs.-electricity-breakdown-800x423.png" alt="" class="wp-image-35659"/></figure> <!-- /wp:image --></div> <!-- /wp:column --></div> <!-- /wp:columns --> 
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 Solar and wind generation are growing quickly across the world. This is, of course, good news as we try to shift our energy systems away from fossil fuels. Such progress often makes the headlines. Here is one example from this year: → [More UK energy is coming from clean sources than fossil fuels for the first time ever, National Grid announces](https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/clean-energy-fossil-fuels-national-grid-2019-statistics-latest-a9266116.html)_(Independent, 2020)_ At first glance, we might think that we are edging close to a fossil-free energy system.  Unfortunately, many of  these headlines are misleading.{ref}The headline in _The Independent_ newspaper claims that in the UK more energy came from low-carbon sources than fossil fuels in 2019. As we see from [this chart](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/sub-energy-fossil-renewables-nuclear?country=~GBR) – which looks at the breakdown of the UK energy mix – almost 80% of the UK’s energy came from fossil fuels, and only 20% from ‘clean sources’. The author probably meant to speak only of ‘UK electricity’, which as my post here illustrates, is not the same thing.{/ref}  The Independent made the mistake of using the terms _electricity_ and _energy_ interchangeably, when they are actually not the same thing.  Electricity (or ‘power’) is just one component of total energy consumption. The other two components being transport and heating. When we see headlines about our progress on decarbonization, the quoted figures often refer to electricity. Many countries are making progress on clean electricity, but progress on energy as a whole is much slower. Let’s compare the breakdown of the global energy and electricity mix – these are shown in the chart.  We see a large difference between the share that comes from low-carbon sources. Nuclear and renewables account for more than one-third (36.7%) of global _electricity_. But they account for less than half that figure (15.7%) of the global _energy_ mix. This is because the other elements of the energy demand – transport and heating – rely much more heavily on fossil fuels. But there is another aspect to consider. The fact that transport and heating are harder to decarbonize, clean electricity will become ever-more important. Many solutions rely on us electrifying other parts of the energy system – such as shifting to electric vehicles. The _International Energy Agency_, for example, [projects that by 2030](https://www.iea.org/reports/global-ev-outlook-2020), global electricity demand for electric vehicles will increase five- to eleven-fold from levels in 2019. If we are to reap the climate benefits of electric vehicles, this electricity needs to be as low-carbon as possible. But when we see headlines on progress in decarbonizing the electricity sector we need to remember that it is just one part of the energy story. If we don’t, we risk falling into a false sense of progress and let leaders, governments and companies boast targets that are not nearly ambitious enough. <Image filename="Global-energy-vs.-electricity-breakdown.png" alt=""/> 
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