Electricity generation worldwide is forecast to triple in the next three decades, when compared to 2020, reaching 83,000 terawatt-hours by 2050. Global electricity generation is projected to surpass 30,000 terawatt-hours by 2025.
Electrification and decarbonization
The growth in worldwide power generation will largely be driven by decarbonization efforts, including the electrification of the transportation and building sectors. For example, all vehicle types in the global urban fleet will become increasingly electrified by 2030. By 2050, electric vehicles are projected to command more than 80 percent of the worldwide car market.
In the building sector, efforts to decarbonize heating systems also rely on electricity. Annual sales of electric heat pumps are forecast to skyrocket in the coming years.
Global electricity trends
Since 1990, global power generation has increased every year except in 2009, following the global financial crisis, and in 2020, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Increasing power demand is the result of a variety of factors, including economic development and increasing access to electricity throughout the world.
Electricity generation worldwide in 2015 and 2020, with a forecast until 2050
(in 1,000 terawatt-hours)
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McKinsey & Company. (April 27, 2022). Electricity generation worldwide in 2015 and 2020, with a forecast until 2050 (in 1,000 terawatt-hours) [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved September 19, 2024, from https://www-statista-com.ezproxy.canberra.edu.au/statistics/1262346/electricity-generation-worldwide-forecast/
McKinsey & Company. "Electricity generation worldwide in 2015 and 2020, with a forecast until 2050 (in 1,000 terawatt-hours)." Chart. April 27, 2022. Statista. Accessed September 19, 2024. https://www-statista-com.ezproxy.canberra.edu.au/statistics/1262346/electricity-generation-worldwide-forecast/
McKinsey & Company. (2022). Electricity generation worldwide in 2015 and 2020, with a forecast until 2050 (in 1,000 terawatt-hours). Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: September 19, 2024. https://www-statista-com.ezproxy.canberra.edu.au/statistics/1262346/electricity-generation-worldwide-forecast/
McKinsey & Company. "Electricity Generation Worldwide in 2015 and 2020, with a Forecast until 2050 (in 1,000 Terawatt-hours)." Statista, Statista Inc., 27 Apr 2022, https://www-statista-com.ezproxy.canberra.edu.au/statistics/1262346/electricity-generation-worldwide-forecast/
McKinsey & Company, Electricity generation worldwide in 2015 and 2020, with a forecast until 2050 (in 1,000 terawatt-hours) Statista, https://www-statista-com.ezproxy.canberra.edu.au/statistics/1262346/electricity-generation-worldwide-forecast/ (last visited September 19, 2024)
Electricity generation worldwide in 2015 and 2020, with a forecast until 2050 (in 1,000 terawatt-hours) [Graph], McKinsey & Company, April 27, 2022. [Online]. Available: https://www-statista-com.ezproxy.canberra.edu.au/statistics/1262346/electricity-generation-worldwide-forecast/