Lecture Kleinman Center Event

What Matters for Electrification? Evidence from 70 Years of U.S. Home Heating Choices

Speaker

Lucas Davis
Jeffrey A. Jacobs Distinguished Professor in Business and Technology, Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley

Moderator

Mark Alan Hughes
Founding Faculty Director, Kleinman Center of Energy Policy

Virtual event

The energy transition is moving many in the United States towards electric heating systems, with changing energy prices being the biggest factor in household decisions to switch to an electric system. Join Visiting Scholar Lucas Davis for a closer look.

Event Summary

As we continue to experience the energy transition and the push toward lower carbon dioxide emissions, many in the United States are adopting electric cars and electric heating and cooling systems. But what motivates someone to move their household to electric heating?

The percentage of U.S. homes heated with electricity has increased steadily from 1% in 1950, to 8% in 1970, to 26% in 1990, to 39% in 2018. While geography, climate, housing characteristics, and household income are shown to collectively explain much of the drive towards electric heating, changing energy prices by far the most important single factor.

Join Visiting Scholar Lucas Davis for an exploration of the potential economic cost of an electrification mandate for new homes.


Please note the change in date. This event will now take place on TUESDAY, September 14th, 2021.


View the Presentation

What Matters for Electrification?
Evidence from 70 Years of U.S. Home Heating Choices

Lucas Davis

speaker

Lucas Davis

Jeffrey A. Jacobs Distinguished Professor, UC Berkeley
Lucas Davis is the Jeffrey A. Jacobs Distinguished Professor in Business and Technology at the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley. Davis is a 2021-2022 Kleinman Center Visiting Scholar.
moderator

Mark Alan Hughes

Faculty Co-Director
Mark Alan Hughes leads the Kleinman Center as faculty co-director and writes on topics ranging from deep decarbonization to the future of Philadelphia’s energy landscape. He is also a professor of practice at the Weitzman School.