Sustainable Energy in America Factbook highlights the 2010s – an era of economic growth, reduced CO2 emissions and sharply falling energy costs for consumers
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. overhauled how it produces, delivers, and consumes energy over a momentous decade of change, according to a new report from BloombergNEF (BNEF) and the Business Council for Sustainable Energy (BCSE). In the process, the U.S. posted 10 straight years of economic growth, while cutting both power-sector CO2 emissions and consumer energy costs to their lowest levels in a generation.
The eighth edition of the Sustainable Energy in America Factbook published by BNEF and the BCSE chronicles a profound transformation in U.S. energy that is still very much underway. The report, which includes over 130 slides, provides users with straightforward charts to understand how the change has impacted most segments of the energy sector.
“The transformation we have seen in the last decade has far exceeded expectations,” said Lisa Jacobson, BCSE President. “The facts show that we grew the economy, improved energy security, and cut emissions at the same time – all while making energy more affordable to consumers.”
Utility-scale renewables were just emerging in 2009, and now they win generation contracts on economic grounds. Battery technology is one tenth of its cost in 2009. Today, there are nearly over 85 million “smart meters” in U.S. homes and businesses, up from 9.6 million a decade ago. The number of residential natural gas customers grew by 8% in the last decade while overall residential consumption of gas rose by 5% due to energy efficiency. Consumers are now spending record low proportions of their household budgets on energy costs, a 22% decline since 2009.
The 2020 Factbook showcases the impact of sustainable energy[1] over the last decade and highlights findings for 2019 that follow the macro trends of the 2010s:
