Section 10. Renewable energy

Monthly Energy Review, April, 2005

Sources. The Nation consumed 6.1 quadrillion Btu of renewable energy in 2004, accounting for 6.1 percent (1) of total energy consumption during the year. At 2.7 quadrillion Btu, conventional hydroelectric power was the largest component of the renewable energy total, measuring 45 percent of the total. Wood was the next largest component at 2.0 quadrillion Btu and 33 percent of the total. Waste, the third largest component of the renewable energy total, contributed 0.6 quadrillion Btu in 2004, a 9-percent share of the total.

Electric Power Sector. In 2004, the electric power sector consumed 3.6 quadrillion Btu of renewable energy resources, 59 percent of all renewable energy consumed. Conventional hydroelectric power recorded 2.7 quadrillion Btu in 2004, 74 percent of the electric power sector total. Waste, at 0.3 quadrillion Btu, was the second largest renewable source consumed for electricity generation, followed by geothermal, wood, wind, and solar.

End-Use Sectors. The industrial sector was the largest end-use consumer of renewable energy in 2004. Industrial facilities used 1.7 quadrillion Btu of renewable energy in 2004, 86 percent in the form of wood. The residential sector was the next largest end-use sector in the use of renewable energy, consuming 0.4 quadrillion Btu--81 percent in the form of wood, 14 percent solar, and 4 percent geothermal. The transportation sector consumed renewable energy in the form of alcohol fuels used in the blending of motor gasoline; in 2004, alcohol fuel use was 0.3 quadrillion Btu. The commercial sector used 0.1 quadrillion Btu in 2004, 45 percent of it as waste and 39 percent as wood.