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How much of the world's energy does the United States use? In 2009, world total primary energy consumption was 483 Quadrillion Btu. The United States' primary energy consumption was about 95 Quadrillion Btu, about 20% of the world total. Learn More: International Energy Statistics: Total Primary Energy Consumption Last updated: July 9, 2012

What is U.S. electricity generation by energy source? In 2012, the United States generated about 4,054 billion kilowatthours of electricity.  About 68% of the electricity generated was from fossil fuel (coal, natural gas, and petroleum), with 37% attributed from coal. Energy sources and percent share of  total electricity generation in 2012 were:  Coal 37% Natural Gas 30% Nuclear 19% Hydropower 7% Other Renewable 5% Biomass 1.42% Geothermal 0.41% Solar 0.11% Wind 3.46% Petroleum 1% Other Gases < 1%

Each year we release millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide by burning fossil fuels (oil, coal and gas). In 2010, on average, every single EU citizen emitted 9.4 tonnes of CO2 – that’s enough to fill ten three-storey buildings. For every kWh of wind energy that you use, you will save approximately 696g of CO2. EWEA estimates that wind energy avoided the emission of 140 million tonnes of CO2 in 2011 in the EU, equivalent to taking 33% of cars in the EU – 71 million vehicles – off the road. This avoided CO2 costs of around €3.5 billion (assuming a price of €25/t CO2). Choosing how your electricity is produced plays an important role in protecting the climate: it’s easy to switch to a green power provider; you request the change and your current and future providers will organise it themselves.

According to the American Wind Energy Association, the total U.S. production of wind power is around 25 gigawatts

Technological developments are continually lowering the material and component cost of fuel cells and production is being ramped up and automated, allowing economies of scale to be realised.

The U.S. has had modern, commercial-scale wind power for more than two decades. The first domestic wind farms were constructed in California in the early 1980s.  The U.S. wind industry reached its first 1,000 megawatts of installed capacity in 1985, but then took more than a decade to reach 2,000 megawatts in 1999.  Since 1999, however, the installed capacity has increased fivefold.  Today, wind energy is the nation's fastest growing source of commercial-scale power.  

biofuel has been recently grown, rather than stored and processed over many years. Biofuel is made from what can be grown today whereas fossil fuel comes from biomatter grown millions of years ago – and is therefore not renewable

Biodiesel is a clean, renewable and domestically produced diesel fuel. Both biofuels and fossil fuels are of an organic nature (made from biological matter) but biofuel has been recently grown, rather than stored and processed over many years. Biofuel is made from what can be grown today whereas fossil fuel comes from biomatter grown millions of years ago – and is therefore not renewable . Biofuel is not a finite resource - we are only limited by what we can grow.

Biodiesel consumption was much lower, about 250 million gallons in 2006

which requires an annual increase in biofuels use to 7.5 billion gallons by 2012.

Biodiesel from soybeans costs an estimated $2 to $2.50 per gallon to produce. Biodiesel from yellow grease is about $1 a gallon cheaper, but the available supply in the U.S. is much smaller – enough to make 100 million gallons per year. Producers of biodiesel from pure vegetable oil are eligible for a federal excise tax credit of $1 for every gallon blended with conventional diesel. Biodiesel from used cooking oil earns a credit of 50 cents per gallon.

The cost of hydrogen per mile to power a fuel cell electric vehicle is approximately competitive with the cost of gasoline at $2.30/gallon. This assumes that the hydrogen is made by reforming natural gas at the fueling station with existing commercial hydrogen fueling equipment in low production volumes (10 units). With larger scale production, we estimate that hydrogen will cost less per mile than gasoline selling at $1.50/gallon.

The U.S. consumes a little more than 20 million barrels of oil a day. The largest end uses are motor gasoline (9 million barrels) and diesel (4 million barrels). That works out to about 140 billion gallons of gasoline and 60 billion gallons of diesel a year. In 2006, the U.S. consumed nearly 5.4 billion gallons of ethanol, 12 percent of which was imported. Adjusting for its lower energy content, that amounted to about 2.5% of the total U.S. demand for gasoline. Biodiesel consumption was much lower, about 250 million gallons in 2006.

The U.S. consumes a little more than 20 million barrels of oil a day. The largest end uses are motor gasoline (9 million barrels) and diesel (4 million barrels). That works out to about 140 billion gallons of gasoline and 60 billion gallons of diesel a year. In 2006, the U.S. consumed nearly 5.4 billion gallons of ethanol, 12 percent of which was imported. Adjusting for its lower energy content, that amounted to about 2.5% of the total U.S. demand for gasoline. Biodiesel consumption was much lower, about 250 million gallons in 2006. In the Energy

The U.S. consumes a little more than 20 million barrels of oil a day. The largest end uses are motor gasoline (9 million barrels) and diesel (4 million barrels). That works out to about 140 billion gallons of gasoline and 60 billion gallons of diesel a year. In 2006, the U.S. consumed nearly 5.4 billion gallons of ethanol, 12 percent of which was imported. Adjusting for its lower energy content, that amounted to about 2.5% of the total U.S. demand for gasoline. Biodiesel consumption was much lower, about 250 million gallons in 2006. In the Energy Policy Act of 2005, Congress enacted the Renewable Fuels Standard, which requires an annual increase in biofuels use to 7.5 billion gallons by 2012. The chart above details past levels of U.S. ethanol production and the minimum levels set by the Renewable Fuels Standard. In the 2006 State of the Union address, President Bush announced a goal of replacing “more than 75% of our oil imports from the Middle East by 2025.” According to the Department of Energy, meeting that goal will require 60 billion gallons of biofuels a year. A year later, the President accelerated the timetable and called for “20 in 10.”

Science tells us that every square meter of the earth's surface, when exposed to direct sunlight, receives about 1000 watts (1 kilowatt) of energy from the sun's light.