In this article, we trace six pivotal moments in the long, disruptive march of electrification — showing how electricity gained ground and why it is, once again, gaining momentum. We draw on rarely used data sets from Pinto, Fouquet and IIASA, considering both useful as well as final energy.
Source: Sol3dweller
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This is a key-aspect, that I think is often overlooked:
>Though the outcome may now appear inevitable, electrification in these sectors was fiercely contested at the time. Gas lobbyists resisted electric lighting; city leaders hesitated; electric motors were dismissed as too weak for heavy industry. New technologies were considered too expensive, too complex, or simply implausible — until their advantages became undeniable.
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>This first wave of electrification showed how quickly change could unfold as soon as new electric technologies outperformed the old — not just on performance, but on price. And when that new technology is also more efficient, as electricity tends to be, energy demand can fall even as energy services grow.