We care about your privacy

We use cookies to optimise site functionality and give you the best possible experience.

This section highlights key graphs from our analysis, outlining the ETC’s positioning on key sustainability topics. Our charts are one of the many ways our thought leadership shapes debate around the complex subject of the energy transition. The chart below is from our latest briefing note, Building Grids Faster: the Backbone of the Energy Transition.

Electricity grids are the backbone of the energy transition

The transition to a net-zero economy will rely on widespread clean electrification. The ETC’s latest estimates show that in a clean electrified system, global daily electricity needs will grow from around 20% today, to between 55–70%.[1] As a result, total direct electricity use will need to grow from around 28,000 TWh today to over 60–70,000 TWh.[2] This means at least doubling global electricity use, with sharp growth in some regions. To accommodate the changing nature of power generation and consumption, countries will need to significantly expand and upgrade their grids.

Both transmission grids (which support high-voltage, large-scale movement of electricity over large distances) and distribution grids (which support lower voltages and connect to consumers) will need to expand and grow in complexity. Expanding and upgrading the system is required for:

  • Developing new grid connections.
  • Replacing ageing assets to maintain the existing grid network.
  • Significant system reinforcements.

The chart below from ETC’s latest briefing note, Building Grids Faster, highlights a range of estimates that show that grids must approximately double in length by 2050, from around 68 million km in 2023 to 111–200 million km in 2050. Both transmission and distribution grids must be substantially scaled up in every region of the world.

[1] Range is across the ETC’s Accelerated But Clearly Feasible (ACF) and Possible but Stretching (PBS) scenarios. See ETC (2023), Fossil Fuels in Transition.

[2] There could be a need for up to around 22,000 TWh of wind and solar generation to produce green hydrogen, although this may not require significant grid buildout if renewables are sited with electrolysers.

two colourful bar chartsThis chart is Exhibit 4 from our 2024 briefing note, Building Grids Faster: the Backbone of the Energy Transition.

If you would like to reproduce this chart, please let us know.

Interested in receiving these insights in your inbox? Click here to sign up for our mailing list.