Amar, gas stoves are more energy-efficient than stoves heated by electricity generated by burning gas, then turning turbines, then generating electricity, then sending it over miles of transmission wires, then using it to heat electric filaments in a stove.

Makes sense, doesn't it?

"One of the great ironies in today’s America is that a two time college drop out and Friends of the Earth campaigner who strongly advocated for increasing coal use is often held up as a hero of the environmental movement while also making a lot of money as a consultant for the natural gas industry, Wal-Mart and the Department of Defense. I am, of course, talking about Amory Lovins, the founder of the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI)."

It's almost as if Amory Lovins, RMI's director, wants to burn even more natural gas. That makes sense, too!

The cost parity / advantage of all electric homes is quite noteworthy-- I wonder how it compares with the cost to retrofit existing gas homes to be all electric and, importantly, what type of financing would need to be made available to make that more accessible. 

The easiest and cheapest way to do all-electric homes is with resistance heating units for water, space heating, clothes dryers, and ranges. That simplicity makes for lower up-front costs, but makes for high utility bills and a colossal waste of a high grade energy resource to do what's adequately and more efficiently accomplished with gas -- a lower grade energy resource.

When one starts talking about heat pumps -- and especially ultra-efficient ground source heat pumps -- for water and space heating, then the all-electric home will use less energy overall and benefit both the environment and the homeowner's monthly utility bills. But the up-front costs will be higher. 

A problem with all this is that big gains in the cost of housing and new construction have very little to do with the gas vs. all-electric debate. The big gains have to do with better materials and construction methods, building codes that function less as boat anchors for innovation, and a  construction industry that's more open to innovation. Progress in construction methods does happen, but the pace is glacial.