Fossil fuel primary consumption in the U.S. 1990-2020, by sector

The transportation sector is the largest consumer of primary fossil fuel energy in the United States. Largely due to reliance on petroleum-based motor fuels, the transportation sector consumed nearly 23 quadrillion British thermal units of fossil fuel energy in 2020. By comparison, fossil fuel consumption within the electric power sector decreased in recent years, following a decline in U.S. electricity generation from coal.

Consumption of fossil fuels in the U.S.

Historically, the transportation sector and electric power sector consumed more than half of the fossil fuel-produced energy in the country. Being some of the cheapest energy sources on the market, the U.S. came to rely heavily on natural gas and coal in order to power its ever-growing economy, while gasoline and diesel remain the most common motor fuels. Petroleum is the greatest source of primary energy consumption in the U.S.

Energy transition

Despite the role fossil fuels continue to play in every day life for the U.S. resident, many within the country have urged the U.S. government to adopt more stringent targets to reducing the country's carbon footprint in order to mitigate climate change. An outlook from February 2021 suggest that renewable energy consumption in the U.S. is on track to increase to 21.51 quadrillion British thermal units by 2050. However, this amount is still far lower than the energy needed to offset fossil fuel use.