electricity demand trends vary by region

          In 2022, electricity demand trends vary by region. Power consumption is growing strongly in India and more weakly in China. Electricity demand in the United States has grown strongly, driven by increased economic activity and residential consumption after a hot summer and a colder-than-normal winter.

          Demand in the EU contracted due to unusually mild winter weather and lower power consumption in the industrial sector, which has sharply scaled back production due to high energy prices and supply disruptions.The 3.5 per cent drop in electricity demand in the EU in 2022 was the second steepest since the global financial crisis in 2009, with the bigger drop from last year being an extraordinary contraction caused by the coronavirus shock in 2020.

          The new IEA report notes that global electricity demand and supply are increasingly dependent on the weather. In addition to the drought in Europe, a heatwave in India has caused the country's electricity demand to peak at an all-time high. Similarly, central and eastern China has been hit by a heat wave and drought, leading to a reduction in hydroelectric power generation and a surge in air-conditioning demand in Sichuan province. The United States was also hit by severe winter storms in December that triggered massive power outages.

          This highlights the need to accelerate decarbonization and accelerate deployment of clean energy technologies, the report said. Meanwhile, as the clean energy transition gathers pace, the impact of weather events on electricity demand will intensify due to increased electrification of heating, while the share of weather-dependent renewables in the generation mix will continue to grow. In such a world, improving the flexibility of power systems while ensuring security of supply and resilience of networks is critical.