US electricity use has flattened
American homes and businesses are using less power. A move away from manufacturing and a population shift to the South are among the factors.
You'd think America's electricity use would be skyrocketing, the way we're addicted to our smartphones, computers and televisions. Instead, our use has flattened -- a huge change from the past when growth was topping 8% a year, The Wall Street Journal reports.The newspaper cites projections from the Energy Information Administration, which says that electricity use will only grow 0.6% a year for industrial users and 0.7% for consumers through 2040.
There are several reasons for the slowdown in growth, the Journal reports. Here are some of them.
More efficient products. Appliance makers have made huge progress in developing products that use less energy. The use of compact fluorescent lightbulbs also makes a difference.
Less U.S. manufacturing. Industrial companies are also getting efficient. And their numbers are declining as well as manufacturing has shifted elsewhere in this global economy.
A population shift to the South. The Economist reports that Americans are moving from Northern states to Southern states. As a result, they aren't running their heaters as much. Although air-conditioning uses more energy than heating, people don't need to use air-conditioning as much.
Better insulation. The Economist also notes that U.S. homes and businesses have better insulation, so we don't have to run our air conditioners and heaters as much.
This is all good news, unless you're a power company. Many are trying to improve profits in this slowdown, and struggling, the Journal reports. Some of them are building high-voltage transmission lines, which produce more money. Some are cutting investments in nuclear and renewable-energy projects.
More on Money Now
- Why Al-Jazeera is buying Current TV
- Fiscal cliff deal has hidden NASCAR perk
- 2 months until next budget crisis?
| Tags: | EconomyTechnology |
Over the last few years, starting about when I retired we/I thought we should get more energy efficent and conscience...
We ended up replacing all the windows we had left with Low E windows, we had done about a 1/3 before then, about 18 total...Reduced sizes some places, but still have about 5 large ones.
Have eventually replaced all doors into house, 4...Not including a LowE deck slider.
Added insulating factors and replaced all siding with wood/cedar...Added 1/2 (at least) inch more drywall inside..Everything is caulked heavely,(not completely done), any cracks in concrete mostly sealed...
Determined to add outside sheeting and insulating to walls with underlayment and OSB.
Brought most walls to 7-8 inch thickness....SW walls to 9 inches...
Pretty much increased all walls by at least 2 to 2 1/2 inches or more.
Added thermo ice/storm shield to roof....All of roof, not just leading 3-5 feet or peaks.
Most or all of roofs have, have been replaced in last 5-7 years.
Added insulation and better venting to attic areas...
It's cost a few bucks over time.....But is paying us back in energy bills and going more then break even...A win-win situation..
We have a plethora of different types of energy use at our abode...
Electric
Sometimes solar nite lights..
Bottle Gas or Propane
Fuel oil furnace
And wood burners, which we haven't used for a few years
At one time our heat, was supplemented by propane heat in a couple of rooms, no longer..
Installed larger furnace,cut the Bgas usage. About 35 years ago.
Within last year installed 50 gal. more efficient electric water heater, cut propane usage again.
Have saved over an average of $300 a year on propane, only use for cooking now..
Electric water heater cost about $5 per month added to electric bill..
Savings of $250-300 per year(net).
We have converted most lights to CFLs....Wife does not like,she still use ICs a couple places.
Sticking with the Article at hand.....Yeah, I could believe, there is quite a lot less usage because of empty houses and foreclosures...If owned by banks, many have went into a shutdown mode and were prepared with water drained, shutoffs and lights,heat and air eliminated...
Unfortunately it is not good for houses to sit like that for any extended time, without heating/cooling or water running through pipes and occasional airing out...Maintenance needs to include the simple things also...
We have been witness to what happens to some houses/homes that sit vacant too long..
And that does not include the vandalism factor..
Mother Nature on her own or left to her own devices, can be quite cruel; And take back,what was once hers......
LED TV's alone drop energy use some 95% over the old fashion versions or plasmas TV's.
we switche to twister bulbs 12 years ago and thru monitoring free data from our local electric company saw a serious decline in electric use. also fewer incandesent bulbs mean less nees for AC in the summer to delete that extra heat. ALSO incandesent bulbs, while hot, are weak ways to heat a house verses gas or oil heating.
i do wonder how much seriously unemployed people contribute to this. they may be huddled around just a candle now with no lights or TV's even on.....
There are Dozens of ways to cut down on Electrical and fuel usage....
I think up until a couple years back, you could get energy tax credits to write off your income.?
Think it dealt mostly with improvements in the home....
Certain new low energy using appliances, also like water heaters or furnaces.
Low E windows, doors, insulation, even caulking...
A certain percentage % factor of the cost' were recoverable.. Up to a max $ dollar amount.
I would like to see electricity use decline sharply each year as an environmentalist concerned about global warming and air pollution. It's ridiculous to keep wasting electricity through incandescent bulbs, inefficient a/c, and people carelessly leaving on lights, computers, tvs and electronics. Far too many homes are underinsulated.
Then why can't every home and business with a roof add a solar panel saving the environment and money?
The East Coast hurricane Sandy shows the need for solar panels on every home and business if practical.
DATA PROVIDERS
Copyright © 2013 Microsoft. All rights reserved.
Quotes are real-time for NASDAQ, NYSE and AMEX. See delay times for other exchanges.
Fundamental company data and historical chart data provided by Thomson Reuters (click for restrictions). Real-time quotes provided by BATS Exchange. Real-time index quotes and delayed quotes supplied by Interactive Data Real-Time Services. Fund summary, fund performance and dividend data provided by Morningstar Inc. Analyst recommendations provided by Zacks Investment Research. StockScouter data provided by Verus Analytics. IPO data provided by Hoover's Inc. Index membership data provided by SIX Financial Information.
Japanese stock price data provided by Nomura Research Institute Ltd.; quotes delayed 20 minutes. Canadian fund data provided by CANNEX Financial Exchanges Ltd.
RECENT POSTS
The company tries to tamp down criticism from activists who argue that the mascot promotes childhood obesity.
- Oklahoma senators change tune on disaster relief
- At software giant SAP, autism is an asset
- Mike Bloomberg's next career: Taxi magnate?
- Shotgun wedding for Saks and Neiman Marcus?
- Charles Ramsey gets burgers for life, but no Big Macs
- New Jersey bar sting turns up 'swill'
- Mike's Hard Lemonade goes after male drinkers
- Big job gains expected next year, economists say
- Yum aims to fatten up by doubling Taco Bell sales
MARKET UPDATE
[BRIEFING.COM] The major averages ended modestly lower with the S&P 500 shedding 0.3%.
The benchmark average saw an opening loss of 1.2% after Japan's Nikkei tumbled 7.3%. Japanese stocks sold off amid continued volatility in Japanese Government Bond futures as the 10-yr yield spiked almost 16 basis points to 1.002 before the Bank of Japan's JPY2 trillion liquidity injection caused yields to retrace their gains.
Adding insult to injury was news out of China where the HSBC ... More
More Market News
TOP STOCKS
In the never-ending contest for sales, American carmakers are pulling ahead.
MSN MONEY'S
- Shared
- Commented
- Viewed
