Discover the economic, social and environmental benefits of electrifying our homes, cities and communities. For further details, see Powering the Transition: Building Electrification.

 

What is electrification?

Buildings account for over a third of CO2 emissions globally. Switching from fossil-fuel based technologies and processes to electrically powered equivalents – known as electrification – and sourcing power from renewable energy are key ways to decrease the emissions of our buildings.  

While electrification is increasing, electricity still only accounts for 35% of buildings’ energy use. And yet there are many reasons, including financial and societal, as well as environmental, why it’s beneficial to remove fossil fuels from our built assets.  

What are the benefits of electrification?

At a time when people are trying to reduce costs, and businesses are looking for competitive advantage, electrifying our buildings offers multiple economic benefits: 

• Lowering operating costs – Electric appliances are typically more efficient which reduces energy consumption and operating costs. For example, at least 85% of US households would save money on energy bills if they used all-electric equipment.  

• Providing energy security – By using locally-generated renewable energy, electrification can help support local and national energy independence, stabilise long-term costs and safeguard against fluctuations in fossil fuel prices.  

• Future-proofing our buildings – With energy performance standards and building energy codes increasing in stringency across the world for both new and existing buildings, assets that don’t keep pace could lose value or even become uninsurable.  

• Attracting investors and tenants – All-electric buildings are becoming increasingly attractive to occupiers of commercial buildings due to their increased efficiency and their own company sustainability (ESG) targets. For investors, electric buildings offer long-term asset value by keeping up with regulatory, reputational and other changes.  

Electrification and renewable energy also provide social and environmental benefits as well as financial ones:  

• Reduced energy use and emissions – Improving energy efficiency with all-electric operations and appliances, combined with switching to renewable energy sources, reduces the high energy consumption and carbon emissions of the built environment. 

• Creating jobs – Electrification drives demand for skilled workers, which boosts local economies. For example, the Irish government offered a €500 incentive for upskilling as a heat pump installer. This both ensures the development of skilled workers, while also future proofing for careers in an expanding industry.  

• Increasing community resilience – On-site renewables can boost the resilience of locations that experience outages to their power systems.  

• Health and safety benefits – Electrified buildings provide improved indoor air quality compared to buildings using fossil fuel-based systems by avoiding harmful pollutants and particulate matter. For example, homes with gas stoves have nitrogen dioxide concentrations that are 50-400% higher than those with electric stoves.  

How is policy supporting progress?

Building electrification is gaining traction at an international, regional and national level. This ranges from international cooperation such as the Buildings Breakthrough, and regional policies and regulations such as the EU’s Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), to strong national policies and even state and city-level actions such as City of Vancouver’s plans to transition to zero emissions buildings in all new construction by 2030.  

WorldGBC is coleading work to strengthen policy coherence across national and subnational levels under the COP30 Plans to Accelerate Solutions (PAS) on Building Efficiency, Electrification, and Renewable Integration (BEERI). In partnership with C40 Cities and the International Energy Agency (IEA), the BEERI PAS sets out the concrete steps needed to align policy frameworks, mobilise finance, and embed transparent monitoring and verification systems to deliver measurable emissions reductions and resilience gains. 

What’s the long-term impact?

Buildings are designed to last for many decades, and longer, therefore the decisions we make today will shape their performance, energy use and cost-effectiveness, as well as their impact on our communities and environment, for years and years to come.  

It is worth considering that every building and market is different, and there is no one-size-fits-all approach. Everyone from governments to building owners should tailor solutions to local contexts taking into consideration factors such as readiness, affordability and whole lifetime impact of a building to ensure the benefits are shared fairly and individuals and communities are all supported during the transition.

Find out more

For further information on the methods and benefits of electrifying buildings, please see our latest publication Powering the Transition: Building Electrification. Also included are practical real-life examples from all electric hospitals to net zero skyscrapers and solar powered villages from across the world. Plus, an overview of the recommendations and targets on electrification from regional and national climate action roadmaps to support everyone on the journey towards fully electrified, clean energy buildings.