EIA : NONFOSSIL FUELS ACCOUNTED FOR 21 % OF ENERGY CONSUMPTION IN 2020
EIA : NONFOSSIL FUELS ACCOUNTED FOR 21 % OF ENERGY CONSUMPTION IN 2020
Primary energy consumption totaled 93 quadrillion British thermal units ( quads ) in the United States in 2020 , or 7 quads less than in 2019 . Fossil fuels — specifically petroleum , natural gas , and coal — accounted for 79 % of total U . S . energy consumption in 2020 . About 21 % of U . S . energy consumption in 2020 came from nonfossil fuel sources such as renewables and nuclear — the highest share since the early 1900s , according to data in EIA ’ s Monthly Energy Review .
During 2020 , responses to the COVID- 19 pandemic and other economic factors significantly reduced energy use in the United States . The 7-quad decline in U . S . energy consumption last year was the largest annual decrease on record . Almost all of this decline came from less consumption of fossil fuels , especially petroleum used for transportation and coal used for electricity generation . In 2020 , U . S . fossil fuel energy consumption , totaling 73 quads , was at its lowest level since 1991 .
Among U . S . nonfossil fuel energy sources , renewable energy consumption increased slightly from 11.4 quads in 2019 to a record high of 11.6 quads in 2020 . Renewable energy was the only U . S . fuel source whose share of total energy consumption increased in 2020 . Increases in consumption of renewables used for electricity generation , including wind and solar energy , were partially offset by declines in biofuel consumption in the transportation sector . U . S . nuclear energy consumption totaled 8.2 quads in 2020 , the lowest level since 2013 .
Petroleum has been the most-consumed energy source in the United States since surpassing coal in 1950 . U . S . petroleum consumption remains below its 2005 peak , and in 2020 , it totaled 32.2 quads . U . S . natural gas consumption totaled 31.5 quads in 2020 , a slight decline from the previous year but the second-highest level of natural gas consumption in the United States on record .
U . S . coal consumption fell to 9.2 quads in 2020 , the lowest level in 116 years . U . S . coal consumption has fallen by more than half since its peak in 2005 ; reduced use in the electric power sector has driven much of this decline .
Source : U . S . Energy Information Administration , Monthly Energy Review
Monthly Energy Review ’ s pre-1949 estimates of U . S . energy use are based on two sources : Sam Schurr and Bruce Netschert ’ s Energy in the American Economy , 1850 – 1975 : Its History and Prospects and the U . S . Department of Agriculture ’ s Circular No . 641 , Fuel Wood Used in the United States 1630 – 1930 .
Appendix D of Monthly Energy Review compiles these estimates of U . S . energy consumption in 10-year increments from 1635 through 1845 and 5-year increments from 1845 through 1945 . Data for 1949 through the present day are available in the latest Monthly Energy Review . l FON
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