Something very odd is happening in the U.S. energy system, and hardly anyone has noticed.
To make a dollar of real GDP in 2016, the U.S. used 65% less oil than in 1975 (despite 26 years’ stagnation in new autos’ efficiency), 65% less directly used natural gas (direct fuel or feedstock, not power-plant fuel), and 56% less total primary energy. Yet electric intensity—total electricity consumed per dollar of real GDP—fell by only 29%. That’s less than half the percentage savings in oil or gas, the economy’s main direct fuels (since 93% of U.S. coal is burned to make electricity). So why is electric intensity going down only half as fast as total energy intensity, especially fuel intensity? The answer to this riddle is complex but important.
