April 23, 2013: Growth in Electricity Use Slows Due to Energy Efficiency
WASHINGTON — The growth of electricity demand has slowed in each decade since the 1950s — from a 9.8 percent annual rate of growth in the 1950s to only 0.7 percent per year in the first decade of the 21st century — and will continue its slow growth due to energy efficiency, according to the latest market trends report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).
In EIA’s reference case projection for the next three decades, electricity demand growth remains relatively slow, as increasing demand for electricity services is offset by efficiency gains from new appliance standards and investments in energy efficient equipment. In the projection from 2011 to 2040, total electricity demand grows by 28 percent (a slight uptick of 0.9 percent per year), from 3,839 billion kWh in 2011 to 4,930 billion kWh in 2040.