EME 801
Energy Markets, Policy, and Regulation

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Energy Transition in Historical Context

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Energy Transition in Historical Context

The current energy transition away from fossil fuels is dramatic until it is placed in a historical context. Let’s look at the graph below for a great visualization:

A line graph showing that fossil fuels accounted for 80% of US energy consumption vs. just 20% for nonfossil in 2019
Figure 1.6: Nonfossil sources accounted for 20% of U.S. energy consumption in 2019.
Nonfossil sources accounted for 20% of U.S. energy consumption in 2019(link is external). From U.S. Energy Information Administration(link is external). Public Domain licensed under CC0 1.0(link is external). For an accessible version contact EIA(link is external).

Make sure to read the following articles, which are all listed on the Lesson 1 Overview page:

  • "Nonfossil Sources Accounted for 20% of US Energy Consumption in 2019"
  • "Peaking: A Breif History of Slelect Energy Transitions"
  • "The 200-year History of Mandkind's Energy Transitions"