In the last 30 years, overall energy consumption has grown by about 22 quadrillion Btu. The share of energy consumption by the transportation sector has seen modest growth in that time – from about 26% to 28% of the energy consumed. The electric utility sector saw the greatest increase from less than 33% to over 40% of overall energy consumption while the share of residential, industrial and commercial sectors all decreased.
Changes in the energy sources consumed are also noteworthy. In 1982, renewables made up just 0.1 percent of the transportation sector and by 2012, renewables grew to 4.4%. The use of coal, shown in black, declined as a share of energy consumption in all sectors in which it is used, while natural gas (blue) showed significant gains in all sectors except for transportation.
Energy Consumption by Sector and Energy Source, 1982
[Total Consumption for 1982 = 73.1 quadrillion Btu]
Energy Consumption by Sector and Energy Source, 2012
[Total Consumption for 2012 = 95.1 quadrillion Btu]
Supporting Information
| Sector share: | 26.1% | 9.8% | 26.1% | 5.3% | 32.7% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Transportation | Residential | Industrial | Commercial | Electric Utility | |
| Coal | 0.0% | 0.4% | 13.4% | 4.0% | 52.5% |
| Natural Gas | 3.2% | 65.9% | 37.1% | 68.6% | 13.8% |
| Petroleum | 96.7% | 20.1% | 40.8% | 26.8% | 6.5% |
| Renewables | 0.1% | 13.6% | 8.8% | 0.6% | 13.7% |
| Nuclear | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 13.1% |
| Total | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% |
| Sector share: | 28.0% | 6.2% | 21.6% | 4.0% | 40.2% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Transportation | Residential | Industrial | Commercial | Electric Utility | |
| Coal | 0.0% | 0.0% | 7.2% | 1.1% | 41.4% |
| Natural Gas | 2.9% | 71.8% | 42.4% | 78.6% | 24.3% |
| Petroleum | 92.8% | 17.2% | 39.6% | 16.8% | 0.6% |
| Renewables | 4.4% | 11.0% | 10.8% | 3.5% | 12.2% |
| Nuclear | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 21.0% |
| Total | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% |
| Source: U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration, Monthly Energy Review, Tables 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6. | |||||