Smart electrification with renewables: driving the transformation of energy services
The world has made the transition from one dominant form of energy to another several times. The replacement of fossil fuels with renewables marks the next historic shift. Yet, to ensure sustainability and global climate stability, this latest energy transformation needs to happen much faster. Countries around the world need a vast expansion of renewables, smarter and more flexible electricity grids, and huge increases in the numbers of vehicles and other products and processes that run on electricity. Those three elements – combined in a “Smart Electrification” strategy – will be crucial in shaping the world’s new, renewable-dominated energy system. This publication provides policy makers with a conceptual overview of the global transition to electrification with renewables. Crucially, this work was undertaken jointly by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and the State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC). As such, it benefits from the perspective of the world’s largest grid operator, and one that is strongly focused on the challenges and opportunities of rapid electrification, digitalisation and renewables deployment.
