EEI > Issues & Policy > Finance & Tax Issues > Wall Street Briefing
Wall Street Briefing  
EEI Wall Street Briefing
February 6, 2019, New York, NY
Delivering America's Energy Future
Electric Power Industry Outlook
A Message From EEI President Thomas R. Kuhn

Each day, EEI’s member companies are hard at work, providing the reliable, affordable, secure, and increasingly clean energy that our customers need and expect. At the same time, EEI’s member companies are transitioning to cleaner energy resources and reducing their carbon emissions; modernizing the energy grid and building smarter energy infrastructure; and delivering innovative energy solutions in a rapidly changing world.

We are excited and optimistic about the opportunities we have before us. More important, we are confident the transformation we are leading will deliver America’s energy future. We are committed to putting our customers first, to maintaining reliability, and to keeping electricity prices low for all customers, especially low-income customers. We are advocating for policies that focus on outcomes, support progress, and accelerate innovation. And, we are working with the Administration and with policymakers on both sides of the aisle in Congress, and in the states, to find common ground and to advance policies that benefit our customers. 

We can, and we must, work together to achieve meaningful progress with our nation’s energy priorities. 

Prepared Remarks
Presentation
We are excited and optimistic about the opportunities we have before us. More important, we are confident the transformation we are leading will deliver America’s energy future.​
Share on Social
The Electric Power Industry: Vital to America's Economy
$865 Billion
Annually

The industry contributes $865 billion annually to our nation's GDP, or about 5 percent of total GDP.

$100 Billion+
Per Year

EEI member companies invest more than $100 billion each year to make the energy grid smarter, stronger, cleaner, more dynamic, and more secure.

7 Million+
American Jobs

Our industry supports more than 7 million jobs across the country—about 1 out of every 20 jobs. 

The Clean Energy Transformation

It truly is incredible just how dramatically our nation's energy mix has changed over the past decade. As a result, the electric power sector's carbon dioxide emissions were 28 percent below a 2005 baseline at the end of 2017—the lowest level since 1988.

To ensure that the clean energy transformation reaches its full potential, EEI is advocating for public policies that increase research and development funding and support for the range of technologies needed to achieve clean energy goals, including energy efficiency, energy storage, renewables, existing and next-generation nuclear, other carbon-free technologies, and carbon capture utilization and storage. 

We also are calling on policymakers to help electrify the transportation sector—recognizing that transportation emissions now are the largest source of emissions in the United States—by modernizing federal transportation programs to encourage investments in electric transportation and charging infrastructure. ​

Clean Energy Facts
CO2 Emissions Are 28% Below
2005 Levels

At the end of 2017, the electric power sector’s CO2 emissions were 28 percent below a 2005 baseline, the lowest level since 1988 and lower than the transportation sector since 2016.​

More Than 1/3 of Electricity
From carbon-free Sources

Today, more than one-third of our nation’s electricity comes from carbon-free sources, including nuclear energy and hydropower and other renewables.​

>1/2
in wind and solar

Since 2005, the percentage of renewable sources in the energy mix has quadrupled—more than half of new electricity generation capacity each year is wind and solar. 

The Benefits of Electric Transportation

Last October, we reached a milestone—more than 1 million EVs on America’s roads—that EEI celebrated with automakers, infrastructure providers, environmental organizations, and policymakers. Today, the momentum from manufacturers around the world truly continues to surge. 

A new report from EEI and the Institute for Electric Innovation (IEI) projects that we will reach 2 million EVs by early 2021, and more than 18 million by 2030. About 9.6 million charge ports will be required to support them—a significant investment in EV charging infrastructure. EEI’s member companies are taking the lead, investing more than $1 billion over the next five years to deploy charging infrastructure and to create customer programs and projects to accelerate electric transportation. 

From a policy perspective, we will continue to promote transportation electrification to benefit the environment and to enhance customer options. We will support investments in electric transportation and the necessary charging infrastructure. And, we will continue to support the EV tax credit for new vehicle purchases.

Celebrating More Than 1 Million EVs on U.S. Roads
EEI and IEI: Electric Vehicle Sales Forecast and the Charging Infrastructure Required Through 2030
Infrastructure Policy
Smarter energy infrastructure is key to giving customers the energy solutions they want. To ensure that we can meet our customers’ needs, EEI's member companies invest more than $100 billion each year to make the energy grid smarter, stronger, cleaner, more dynamic, and more secure. 

Since 2005, EEI member companies have invested more than $445 billion in transmission and distribution infrastructure. These investments help to increase the integration of renewable resources, power the rapid increase of electric vehicles, and facilitate the adoption of a broad array of smart technologies to better serve our communities.​

Building Smarter Energy Infrastructure
Storm and Wildfire Response

Last year, Mother Nature tested our industry’s resolve with four nor’easters, devastating wildfires, and a pair of major hurricanes, Florence and Michael, among other events. Using what we have learned from previous storms, EEI implemented comprehensive and aggressive responses to each event. 

We leveraged the industry-government partnership forged through the CEO-led Electricity Subsector Coordinating Council (ESCC) to facilitate timely communications and to coordinate resource allocation and response efforts. 

Mutual assistance is a hallmark of our industry—our companies have some of the most talented, caring, and dedicated workers anywhere. 

The unprecedented devastation caused by wildfires across the West highlights the continued need for our industry to look collectively for strategies to manage and mitigate the wildfire risk. To that end, EEI has established a wildfire practice to address these challenges and to share the experiences and suggested practices of the companies and their employees who deal with wildfire risk and response every day.​

One Team, One Mission—Puerto Rico Power Restoration
EEI Executive Vice President Brian Wolff: Restoring Hope
Energy Grid Security

​Our industry’s intensive work regarding storm and wildfire preparedness and response is part of our broader commitment to addressing a topic of paramount concern to policymakers and our customers: securing the energy grid. Beyond ensuring the safety of our customers and our workers, protecting the energy grid is our top priority.

EEI and our member companies constantly are working to improve grid security, reliability, and resiliency, and we will continue to strengthen cyber and physical defenses and to elevate preparedness. Our strong industry-government partnership, coordinated through the ESCC, will continue to be key to accomplishing our shared goal of protecting the energy grid against all threats.​

Protecting the Energy Grid for Customers
Financial Highlights
A hot summer across much of the country powered electricity demand higher in 2018. Electric output grew by 4.2 percent in the third quarter and by 3.1 percent for the full year.

Our industry remains the most capital-intensive industry in America. For the seventh consecutive year, we expect another industry record, with total capital expenditures projected at $127.1 billion in 2018. Industry capital expenditures, which have tripled since the cyclical low in 2004, continue to be an important growth engine.​

Q4 2018 Industry Financial Highlights
Additional Resources
February 6, 2019
EEI Press Release
January 2019
EEI Energy Talk
Monthly E-Newsletter from EEI
January/February 2019
Electric Perspectives Magazine
Accelerating Our Customer Transformation
February 2019
Full Presentation with Appendix

701 Pennsylvania Ave NW
Washington, D.C. 20004-2696
202-508-5000
Follow Us
The Edison Electric Institute (EEI) is the association that represents all U.S. investor-owned electric companies. Our members provide electricity for about 220 million Americans, and operate in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. As a whole, the electric power industry supports more than 7 million jobs in communities across the United States. In addition to our U.S. members, EEI has more than 65 international electric companies with operations in more than 90 countries, as International Members, and hundreds of industry suppliers and related organizations as Associate Members.

Organized in 1933, EEI provides public policy leadership, strategic business intelligence, and essential conferences and forums.
© Edison Electric Institute. All rights reserved.
Careers | Contact Us | Newsroom | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Site Map | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube | RSS
No
No