Electrifying Heating in Commercial and Institutional Buildings

The briefing emphasizes that clean electrification is the most efficient path to net-zero in Canada, noting that three quarters of emissions from building heating must be eliminated by 2040. It highlights the need for the industrial sector to increase electricity use to 41% by 2050 and for the electricity sector to accommodate a doubling of consumption by the same date, while noting that the electrification of medium- and heavy-duty vehicle fleets is currently lagging behind the light-duty market.

• To meet net-zero targets, approximately 75% of emissions from the commercial and institutional building heating sector in Canada must be removed by 2040.
• The Canadian industrial sector needs to increase its reliance on electricity from over 25% of its energy needs to 41% by 2050, while also lowering overall energy consumption.
• Canada's electricity sector must prepare for at least a twofold increase in current electricity consumption by 2050 to support electrification efforts.
• Electrification of medium- and heavy-duty vehicle fleets in Canada is progressing more slowly than the light-duty market and is not yet occurring at the scale required for significant emission reductions.

APA

International Institute for Sustainable Development (2022). Electrifying Heating in Commercial and Institutional Buildings. https://www.iisd.org/publications/brief/electrifying-heating-commercial-and-institutional-buildings

Chicago

International Institute for Sustainable Development. Electrifying Heating in Commercial and Institutional Buildings. 2022. https://www.iisd.org/publications/brief/electrifying-heating-commercial-and-institutional-buildings.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=International Institute for Sustainable Development |title=Electrifying Heating in Commercial and Institutional Buildings |date=24 May 2022 |url=https://www.iisd.org/publications/brief/electrifying-heating-commercial-and-institutional-buildings |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{internationalinstituteforsustainabledevelopment2022electrifying, author = {{International Institute for Sustainable Development}}, title = {{Electrifying Heating in Commercial and Institutional Buildings}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2022}, month = may, url = {https://www.iisd.org/publications/brief/electrifying-heating-commercial-and-institutional-buildings}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }