Powering through the heat: how 2024 heatwaves reshaped electricity demand

The report analyzes how extreme heatwaves in 2024 increased electricity demand and fossil fuel generation in the world's three largest electricity markets: China, the United States, and India. Using a population-weighted temperature methodology, Ember found that cooling needs significantly drove demand spikes during critical summer months, leading to increased reliance on coal and gas to fill generation gaps.

• In 2024, heatwaves significantly increased electricity demand across the three largest global power markets. Between April and September 2024, higher air cooling needs accounted for an estimated 37% of the increase in US electricity demand, 31% in China, and 19% in India compared to the same period in 2023.
• Cooling demand acted as a primary driver of electricity demand growth during specific peak months. In the US, cooling needs were responsible for the entire year-on-year demand increase in June 2024. In China, cooling doubled the year-on-year demand increase during August and September 2024. In India, cooling contributed over a third of the demand increase in May 2024 alone.
• Heatwave-driven demand led to a surge in coal generation in China, particularly in August and September 2024. Coal generation grew by 4.4% in August and 10% in September compared to 2023. The combined increase of 68 TWh across these two months represented 59% of China's total annual increase in coal generation (115 TWh).
• In the United States, June 2024 heatwaves boosted both coal and gas generation. Gas generation rose by 4.6% year-on-year in June, and coal generation increased by 6.4% year-on-year. The report notes that without the 4 TWh increase in coal generation during June, US coal generation would have declined by 4% in 2024 instead of 3.5%.
• India's electricity demand saw its largest single-month year-on-year increase of 2024 in May, rising by 20 TWh compared to May 2023. Coal was the primary source used to meet this surge, covering 70% of the year-on-year demand increase in May, while clean generation met 19%.
• The report identifies a feedback loop where relying on fossil fuels to meet cooling demand accelerates climate change, which in turn increases the frequency and intensity of heatwaves. To mitigate this, the report suggests three policy responses: promoting energy-efficient air conditioners, expanding rooftop solar with battery storage, and improving retail electricity pricing to encourage daytime use.

APA

Rangelova, K., Jones, D., & Fulghum, N. (2025). Powering through the heat: how 2024 heatwaves reshaped electricity demand. Ember. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2025/03/EN-Ember-Report_Powering-through-the-heat-how-2024-heatwaves-reshaped-electricity-demand.pdf

Chicago

Rangelova, Kostantsa, Dave Jones, and Nicolas Fulghum. Powering through the heat: how 2024 heatwaves reshaped electricity demand. Ember, 2025. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2025/03/EN-Ember-Report_Powering-through-the-heat-how-2024-heatwaves-reshaped-electricity-demand.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Rangelova |first1=Kostantsa |last2=Jones |first2=Dave |last3=Fulghum |first3=Nicolas |title=Powering through the heat: how 2024 heatwaves reshaped electricity demand |publisher=Ember |date=5 March 2025 |url=https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2025/03/EN-Ember-Report_Powering-through-the-heat-how-2024-heatwaves-reshaped-electricity-demand.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rangelova2025powering, author = {Rangelova, Kostantsa and Jones, Dave and Fulghum, Nicolas}, title = {{Powering through the heat: how 2024 heatwaves reshaped electricity demand}}, institution = {Ember}, year = {2025}, month = mar, url = {https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2025/03/EN-Ember-Report_Powering-through-the-heat-how-2024-heatwaves-reshaped-electricity-demand.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }