Cutting carbon by ‘electrifying everything’
Across the United States, we are witnessing the transition to the “electrification of everything” to support the decarbonization of our environment. The technology to accomplish a fully electric transformation is already available — from electrifying buildings and vehicles to navigating the impact to the grid. But if we are going to address climate change in time, we must address the challenge of electrifying everything before the grid is fully clean.
Electrification of Transport
As the need to reduce carbon emissions has become overwhelmingly clear, we’re also seeing unprecedented support and funding from the federal government to deploy electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure. In addition, state and local governments are increasingly developing standards to require the manufacturing and sales of EVs.
According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), roughly 29 percent of domestic greenhouse gas emissions come from the transportation sector. Also, more than 94 percent of the fuel used for transportation is petroleum based — including gasoline and diesel. Fortunately, one of the most rapidly advancing transitions in the electrification space is that of transport. In just the last quarter of 2023, EV sales rose 37 percent in North America and about 1.6 million electric vehicles were sold across the United States and Canada in 2023 — an increase of almost 50 percent, according to BNEF. And in 2024, BNEF forecasts a further 31 percent growth, to hit 1.9 million units sold in the United States.
To support the advancement of electrified transport and decarbonization, Siemens eMobility worked with Ford Motor Company on their Charge Station Pro, a custom EV charger for the new Ford F-150 Lightning that uses bidirectional power technology to provide energy and security to customers’ homes in the event of an electrical outage. While once just a concept, this is the first time we’re seeing bidirectional power technology implemented at this scale. And it’s just the beginning.
Decarbonizing America’s Building Sector
Buildings account for more than one-third of domestic climate pollution and $370 billion in annual energy costs, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. That’s why in April, the Biden-Harris administration released the first federal blueprint to decarbonize America’s buildings sector, a comprehensive plan to reduce GHG emissions from buildings by 65 percent by 2035 and 90 percent by 2050. While an ambitious goal, by using advanced technologies that exist today, buildings can be smart, safe and decarbonized.
Smart building technology also helps ensure that the infrastructure consumes only the energy that it absolutely needs. Implementing such smart technology reduces the emissions footprint of our existing built environment and, by reducing energy consumption, supports the increasing power demand necessary to support the transition to electrification in other sectors.
Electrifying existing and new infrastructure is an investment in the future. This is the moment for sustainability in the United States — and, fortunately, our decarbonization goals can be achieved with technologies that are available right now. By transitioning to an electrified future, from transportation to buildings and beyond, we will improve our impact on future generations.