The IEA estimates that electric motors and the equipment they drive used 13,462 TWh in 2023, or 53% of global electricity. Motor-driven demand rose 26% from 2015 to 2023, compared with 24% growth in total electricity use. The IEA attributes 72% of industrial electricity use to motors, along with 87% in agriculture, 86% in transportation and 36% in buildings.
Fraunhofer ICT estimates that demand-based speed control for pumps, fans and compressors could save 140 TWh a year in the EU, about 5% of its electricity use, and avoid roughly 38 million metric tons of CO2 annually. Those are potential savings, not measured results.
