World Consumption of Energy

The world energy scenario depicts a picture of concern. The adverse effects on environment caused by the production and consumption of energy have resulted in severe environmental impacts across the globe. The supply of energy is expected to remain adequate in coming years. However, imbalance of energy consumption is prevalent around the world. Energy consumption is high in most developed countries. On the other hand, the developing countries need to consume more energy to ensure economic growth.

The world energy scenario depicts a picture of concern. The adverse effects on environment caused by the production and consumption of energy have resulted in severe environmental impacts across the globe. The supply of energy is expected to remain adequate in coming years. However, imbalance of energy consumption is prevalent around the world. Energy consumption is high in most developed countries. On the other hand, the developing countries need to consume more energy to ensure economic growth. According to estimates, energy consumption in developing countries is only one-tenth of that in the developed countries. The economic development of many countries is hindered due to “energy poverty”.

[br]The major sources of energy in the world are oil, coal, natural gas, hydro energy, nuclear energy, renewable combustible wastes and other energy sources. Combustible wastes include animal products, biomass and industrial wastes. In 1999, the total supply of primary energy in the world was 9,744.48 MTOE (Million Tons of Oil Equivalent). According to estimates of 1999, the total supply of energy in the world in 2010 is projected to be 11,500 MTOE and that in 2020 is expected to be 13,700 MTOE. The contribution of different energy sources to the total supply of energy in the world are –

Oil – 35.1%
Coal – 23.5%
Natural gas – 20.7%
Renewable combustible wastes – 11.1%
Nuclear – 6.8%
Hydro – 2.3%
Other sources – 0.5%

The total consumption of energy in the world in 1999 was 6,753 MTOE. The proportion in which energy from different sources was consumed is –

Oil – 42.7%
Natural gas – 16%
Electricity – 15.4%
Renewable combustible wastes – 14.2%
Coal – 8.2%
Others – 3.5%

[br]Oil is the most important and abundant source of energy in the world. It is also the most highly consumed. However price of crude oil is very volatile and supply is driven by price. While developed industrialized countries consume around 43 million barrels daily on an average, developing countries consume only 22 million barrels per day on an average.

Coal is the second most abundant source of energy in the world and is highly used in power generation. Coal ranks quite low in terms of consumption, however its consumption has increased in certain regions. A concern for many developing countries has been the low quality of coal.

Natural gas has been the energy source with highest rates of growth in recent years. The high end-use efficiency of natural gas has made it a popular choice for power generation projects.

Renewable sources of energy are gaining popularity. However fuel prices and regulatory policies of different countries play an important role in the development of renewals. In Asia there has been a projection of 3.7% growth in renewable energy sources over the ten year period from 2000 to 2010. Hydro electricity has been a major use of hydro sources of energy around the globe.