U.S. Energy Production Falls In 2016

According to a recent EIA report, total energy production for 2016 fell 4% from 2015. This marks the first year-to-year drop in energy production since the 2008-2009 drop. Despite the decline in production, the U.S. saw an increase in total energy imports and exports in 2016.

Fossil fuel production fell 7%, with coal decline (18%) being the largest factor. Petroleum fell 5% and natural gas 2%. Conversely, renewables saw a 7% increase with wind making up almost half of the gain.

One of the largest percentage gains for 2016 was natural gas exports, which increased 30% from 2015 levels. However, total energy exports only rose 7%. Coal exports saw a 19% decline. In fact, 2016 marked the first year on record in which natural gas exports exceeded coal exports when measured in BTUs.

For the full report, visit eia.gov/todayinenergy.