knowledge center

ENERGY BASICS: overview

State of Play:

The United States is about to undergo another sharp turn in its energy policies, following the Trump administration’s switch from President Obama’s focus on addressing climate change to an unfettered commitment to boosting fossil fuel production. The administration of President Joe Biden is restoring climate change as a key driver of energy and environmental policies, while also coping with roiling global natural gas markets in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

U.S. energy overview

Though for decades the United States has been an importer of energy, 2019 marked the first year since 1957 that energy production has exceeded consumption on an annual basis.

The United States consumed 100.2 quadrillion Btu of energy in 2019 and produced 101.0 quadrillion Btu of energy in 2019.

For what does the United States use energy?

The United States consumed 100.2 quadrillion Btu of energy in 2019. Here’s what the country used it for:
transportation (28 percent).
industry (23 percent).
residential (7 percent).
commercial (5 percent).
electric power (37 percent).

On what sources of energy does the United States depend?

The country produced 101.0 quadrillion Btu of energy in 2019. Here’s where it came from: 
petroleum (31 percent).
natural gas (35 percent).
coal (14 percent).
renewables (12 percent).
nuclear (8 percent).

The country’s energy mix, of course, is a bit more complicated. Oil provides almost all of the energy for transportation but almost none of the country’s electricity. In contrast, nuclear power is produced exclusively for electricity.

International Energy Agency: World Energy Outlook 2021

 

here today, more tomorrow

We’ve launched briefing.center with a focus on the press and media.

And we’ve added Citizen Cartwright, a daily quick-read news summary by veteran Washington journalist Linda Cartwright. We’ve also created a new voting rights knowledge center for Citizen Cartwright subscribers. (You can sign up for a dedicated morning email at citizencartwright.com.)

You can sign up here for full access to press and media and Citizen Cartwright on briefing.center.

You can use briefing.center as the center of your information management, or just one of your tools. We’re happy to discuss your information needs.

Sign up