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Short-Term Energy Outlook

Release Date: March 11, 2020  |  Next Release Date: April 7, 2020  |  Full Report    |   Text Only   |   All Tables   |   All Figures

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Electricity

  • EIA expects the annual share of U.S. utility-scale electricity generation from natural gas-fired power plants will remain relatively steady through the forecast; it was 37% in 2019, and EIA forecasts it will average 39% in 2020 and 37% in 2021. Coal’s forecast share of electricity generation falls from 24% in 2019 to 21% in both 2020 and 2021. Electricity generation from renewable energy sources rises from a share of 17% last year to 19% in 2020 and to 21% in 2021. The increase in the renewables share is the result of additions to wind and solar generating capacity. The nuclear share of generation averaged 20% in 2019 and is expected to remain about the same in 2020 and 2021.

U.S. electricity consumption

U.S. electricity generation

U.S. renewable energy supply

U.S. electricity prices

U.S. Electricity Summary
  2018201920202021
aConventional hydroelectric power only. Hydroelectricity generated by pumped storage is not included in renewable energy.
bIncludes electricity and heat generation
cOther renewables includes biofuels production losses and co-products
Retail Prices (cents per kilowatthour)
Residential Sector 12.8713.0213.0513.32
Commercial Sector 10.6710.6610.5410.72
Industrial Sector 6.926.836.786.93
Power Generation Fuel Costs (dollars per million Btu)
Coal 2.062.022.052.06
Natural Gas 3.552.882.232.69
Residual Fuel Oil 12.9212.689.3810.45
Distillate Fuel Oil 16.2015.2111.8013.31
Generation (billion kWh)
Coal 1,145.96966.15810.99841.72
Natural Gas 1,468.731,581.821,637.271,567.14
Nuclear 807.08809.41798.12781.27
Conventional Hydroelectric 292.52273.71290.15281.40
Renewable (non-hydroelectric) 414.34446.73475.34552.31
Total Generation 4,174.404,118.054,052.814,063.55
Retail Sales (billion kWh)
Residential Sector 1,469.101,435.151,412.851,432.77
Commercial Sector 1,381.761,354.541,351.001,351.03
Industrial Sector 1,001.60952.15941.36933.85
Total Retail Sales 3,860.123,749.543,712.603,724.99
U.S. Renewables Consumption (quadrillion Btu)
Geothermal 0.2090.2090.2090.201
Hydropowera 2.6672.4982.6192.551
Solar 0.9171.0441.2891.663
Waste Biomass 0.4870.4330.4280.432
Wind 2.5092.7623.1593.573
Wood Biomass 2.3602.2962.1992.193
Electricity Subtotalb 9.1329.2229.87010.578
Biomass-based Diesel 0.2600.2650.3060.367
Ethanol 1.1881.1991.2021.190
Biofuels Subtotal 1.4481.4641.5081.557
Otherc 0.8240.8000.8090.800
Total 11.40511.48612.18612.935

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Related Tables
Table WF01. Average Consumer Prices and Expenditures for Heating Fuels During the Winter PDF
Table 1. U.S. Energy Markets Summary PDF
Table 2. Energy Prices PDF
Table 7a. U.S. Electricity Industry Overview PDF
Table 7b. U.S. Regional Electricity Retail Sales PDF
Table 7c. U.S. Regional Retail Electricity Prices PDF
Table 7d. U.S. Regional Electricity Generation, Electric Power Sector PDF
Table 8a. U.S. Renewable Energy Consumption PDF
Table 8b. U.S. Renewable Electricity Generation and Capacity PDF
Table 9c. U.S. Regional Weather Data PDF
Related Figures
U.S. electricity consumption XLSX PNG
U.S. residential electricity price XLSX PNG
U.S. electricity generation by fuel, all sectors XLSX PNG
U.S. renewable energy supply XLSX PNG
U.S. carbon dioxide emissions growth XLSX PNG
U.S. summer cooling degree days XLSX PNG
U.S. winter heating degree days XLSX PNG
U.S. census regions and census divisions XLSX PNG
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