Save for later Print Download Share LinkedIn Twitter Total US energy consumption fell 7% to 93 quadrillion Btu in 2020 from 2019, according to the US Energy Information Administrations's Monthly Energy Review. This was the largest annual decrease in in percentage and absolute terms dating back to 1949. "Much of the 2020 decrease in energy use is attributable to economic responses to the Covid-19 pandemic that began in the US during the spring of 2020," the EIA's Mickey Francis said. The industrial sector fell 5% as decreased US demand for energy-intensive manufacturing produced less gas and crude oil and therefore consumed less energy to produce, refine and process those products. Meanwhile, energy consumption in the US transportation sector fell the most, declining 15%, almost entirely because of decreased petroleum use for travel. The commercial sector's energy use fell 7%. The residential sector saw the smallest loss at 1% as the Covid-19 pandemic caused people to stay in their homes.
