The American Gas Association’s reputation as a trusted source of information and a leading voice in our nation’s capital is well-earned. In our 100-year history, research has always been at the foundation of our work, including a seminal chapter overseeing a network of laboratories that tested and certified natural gas appliances.
In my time here, I have preached the necessity of leading a fact-based debate. AGA staff and member-company employees continue to meet that challenge, producing industry-leading studies and firsthand accounts of what it means to provide essential energy safely and reliably to the American people. Verifiable facts are a valuable commodity these days.
In the July issue of American Gas, I opined about the nature of leadership and the necessity for men and women who sit at the helm of any organization to outline a vision for the future and illuminate the journey to get there. The leaders I sit with in board rooms and on stages throughout the world articulate a remarkably similar vision for the future: a growing economy fueled by clean energy.
To be sure, there is more than one path to get there, and that debate is vital to the health of our democracy. For any plan to succeed, it must align with market realities. We are witnessing the lowest energy-related carbon dioxide emissions in 25 years due to increased natural gas efficiency and the growth of renewable energy. This was made possible by the discovery of vast supplies of domestic natural gas and the affordable and stable prices that followed, as well as a commitment by customers, utilities and regulators to reduce energy consumption. Natural gas usage per household has decreased even as overall demand for energy has risen. This trend is due in part to the installation of tighter-fitting windows and doors, better insulation, utility-sponsored energy efficiency programs and the development of more efficient natural gas appliances. To further these positive trends, we must continue to make it economical for Americans to make clean energy choices.
As the electric grid becomes increasingly decarbonized, proposals have surfaced to force Americans to remove natural gas stoves, furnaces and water heaters from their homes and replace them with electric appliances. While policy-driven residential electrification has been discussed in multiple venues, there has been little or no analysis of the overall costs, benefits and implications of such policies. To help address these gaps—and to lead a fact-based debate—AGA engaged a cross-discipline team of experts at ICF to assist in the evaluation of the association’s residential electrification policy scenarios focused on space and water heating.
You can read about the study and its conclusions in this issue of American Gas. In short, the report found that policy-driven electrification could be burdensome to consumers and to the economy, could have profound impacts and costs on the electric sector, and could amount to a very costly approach for a relatively small reduction in emissions. This study represents the most comprehensive effort to date to evaluate the overall costs, benefits and implications of policies to electrify residential space and water heating.
But the purpose of our exploration of this topic was not merely to find answers to questions that hadn’t been addressed. We also engaged strategy consulting and advisory firm Enovation Partners to identify and quantify advanced natural gas technologies that—now and in the future—can reduce emissions. This effort amounts to what we believe is a thoughtful pathway toward our shared goal of emissions reductions in the United States and global leadership in this topic.
More homes and businesses in the United States use natural gas today than ever before, and the numbers are continuing to increase. America’s natural gas utilities are committed to reducing emissions by using our nation’s abundance of natural gas in a sustainable, environmentally sound and safe manner.
President and CEO