Electrical Industry Trends for 2024
Continuing the Renewable Revolution
Since the rollout of recent U.S. legislation, the efforts to shift to cleaner energy have become increasingly measurable. In the early days of 2024, City Electric Supply (CES) turns to experts to forecast what to expect this year and in those to follow.
Renewable Energy
The United Nations (UN) defines renewable energy to include solar, wind, geothermal, hydropower, ocean, and bioenergy. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), 13 percent of energy consumption in 2022 was renewable — with biomass in the lead, followed by wind, hydroelectric, solar, and geothermal energy.
It’s estimated that solar electricity generation will surpass hydropower in 2024. Data supports this claim by showing an increase in solar power by 44 percent annually (compared to hydropower, with less than a one percent increase annually) from 2009 to 2022. The EIA notes that tax credits allotted to businesses for solar energy have contributed to this growth. Additionally, it’s projected that in 2024, 25 percent of all electricity in the U.S. will come from solar, wind, and other renewable sources.
This is largely a result of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), which has allocated over $62 billion in funding for the Department of Energy in clean energy advancement, demonstration, deployment projects, development of new technologies, and modernizing the U.S. power grid.
Electric Vehicles (EVs)
According to the EIA, there are over two million EVs registered in the United States (August 2023) including battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs). As stated by Bloomberg NEF (BNEF), 2023 saw approximately 1.6 million sales of EVs in the U.S., and that number is predicted to increase to roughly 2.1 million sales this year.
Cox Automotive anticipates that by the end of this year, nearly 24 percent of vehicles on the road will be EVs, PHEVs, and Hybrids.
Moreover, the BIL includes the historically largest federal investment in EV charging with $7.5 billion in funding. Almost $2.4 billion in funding has gone toward states and construction to build EV chargers along U.S. highways — adding to over 160,000 public charging ports currently on America’s roads. The installation of charging stations every 50 miles on major U.S. roads began in 2023, and construction continues steadily into this year. Further, up to $7,500 in tax credits can be awarded with the purchase of new EVs.
Finally, EVs aren’t being purchased only for personal use; electric fleets are also gaining traction in the U.S., which consequently comes after the current administration’s order of federal agencies to stop purchasing emission cars by 2027. Last year alone, over 10,000 electric trucks were purchased, according to the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). In 2022, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) announced to make its entire fleet electric by 2027.
Stay Ahead of the Curve with CES
If you’re considering making green purchases this year, CES is here to support you. CES is a proud supplier of solar energy products and residential EV chargers. For EV charging on a national scale, CES proudly offers EV Solutions.