Energy-tied carbon emissions drop 25-38% below 2005 levels by 2030, EIA projects. Ongoing progress in said emissions-reductions to 2050 projected

U.S. energy-related CO₂ emissions drop 25% to 38% below what they were in 2005 by 2030, according to projections from the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) Annual Energy Outlook 2023 (AEO2023). By the end of the projection period, 2050, U.S. energy-related CO₂emissions are 17% lower in this year’s Reference case compared with last year, after EIA accounted for the effects of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), energy technology costs and performance updates, a changed macroeconomic outlook, and other factors.

EIA’s projected reductions in U.S. energy-related CO₂ emissions are driven by increased electrification, higher equipment efficiency, and the deployment of renewables in the electric sector. Emissions reductions are limited, however, by longer-term growth in U.S. transportation and industrial activity.

With policy changes over the last year and continued technology innovation, we expect to see significant shifts in energy production and use over the next 30 years,” said EIA Administrator Joe DeCarolis. “The resulting projections for energy-related CO₂ emissions are most sensitive to our assumptions regarding economic growth and the cost of zero-carbon generation technology.”

The AEO2023 will be published on the EIA website today, along with a separate Issues in Focus paper that examines the impacts of the IRA, taking into account uncertainty around some of the policy provisions. In the Reference case, implementation of the IRA results in a 33% reduction in energy-related CO₂ emissions by 2030 relative to 2005 compared to a 26% reduction in the No IRA case. Because of the complexity of the IRA and related challenges to modeling some of its provisions, not all of its energy system impacts are represented in AEO2023. Documentation of EIA’s IRA-related modeling assumptions is included with today’s release.

Highlights from AEO2023 include:

Renewable generating capacity grows in all regions of the United States in all AEO2023 cases, supported by growth in installed battery capacity. EIA sees stable growth in U.S. electric power demand through 2050 in all AEO2023 cases because of increasing electrification and ongoing economic growth. Investment in renewable sources such as wind and solar, and the operating cost advantage of those sources, increases the share of zero-carbon electricity generation in EIA’s projections. EIA projects growth in installed battery capacity in all cases to support growth in renewables.

Technological advancements and electrification drive projected decreases to demand-side energy intensity. EIA projects an increase in the deployment of heat pumps, electric vehicles, and electric arc furnaces in the iron and steel industry. In the residential and commercial sectors, higher equipment efficiencies and stricter building codes extend ongoing declines in energy intensity. In the transportation sector, light-duty vehicle fuel efficiency improves due to rising Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards and electric vehicle (EV) sales.

High international demand leads to continued growth in U.S. production, and combined with relatively little growth in domestic consumption, allows the United States to remain a net exporter of petroleum products and natural gas through 2050 in all AEO2023 cases. Despite no significant change in the domestic consumption of petroleum and other liquids through 2040 across most AEO2023 cases, we expect U.S. production to remain at historically high volumes. Domestic natural gas consumption also remains relatively stable, despite a shift in electricity generation towards renewables. Production of natural gas, however, continues to grow in response to international demand for liquefied natural gas.

This year’s AEO marks a return of the Administrator’s Foreword and a renewed focus on the narrative to contextualize our results, including technical notes that provide a deeper level of explanation around key issues. To better account for future uncertainty, key insights focus on ranges and trends rather than singular projections.

* “EIA projects that increased electrification, higher equipment efficiencies, and more zero-carbon power sources will reduce U.S. energy-related CO₂ emissions through 2050,” Mar. 16, 2023 U.S. Energy Information Administration press release.

Corresponding, connected home-page-entry image: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration – MUTCD, via Wikimedia Commons