The 7.4 million households in the West North Central States consumed 0.8 quadrillion Btu of energy in 2001, about one-twelfth of the total for U.S. households.




















The relatively small population and low usage of electric heat offset the effects of a cold climate and an aging housing stock on total household electricity consumption in the region.












Out of the 7.4 million households, only 0.8 million used electricity as their main energy source for space heating.






The share of households using air-conditioning in the West North Central Division (91 percent) was similar to the share in the South (95 percent).




















Forty-seven percent of Division “most used” refrigerators were older than 9 years, compared with 32 percent of U.S. refrigerators.























Clothes dryers used more electricity than any other major U.S. household appliance except refrigerators in 2001.



























West North Central prices of residential electricity are projected to be the same in 2030 as they were in 2004, while U.S. prices are projected to be 4.5 percent lower.













New tax credits for energy-efficient equipment can be expected to affect residential energy consumption in the West North Central States and elsewhere.

Electricity Consumption | Efficiency Standards | Table D4-1 | Figures | Sources

Note to Readers: This report is part of a new analytical series on household electricity consumption at regional and State levels. The statistics presented here are derived from data collected in the 2001 Residential Energy Consumption Survey, a household energy survey conducted every 4 years by the Energy Information Administration. Similar statistics from the 2005 survey are expected to be available in late 2006.

The West North Central U.S. Census Division is located in the middle of the northern half of the country. In terms of land area, it is one of the largest Divisions and consists of seven States: Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. The 7.4 million households in those States consumed 0.8 quadrillion Btu of energy in 2001, about one-twelfth of the total for U.S. households. The number of households and the climate were the primary factors affecting the total amount of energy consumed. In general, a larger number of households and a colder climate are correlated with a higher level of energy consumption in a given region. Of the nine U.S. Census Divisions, the West North Central Division was one of the least densely populated, which held down the regional total for household energy consumption. On the other hand, it was among the four coldest of the Divisions, which tended to increase the total. As was generally true in the northern part of the country, the housing stock was older than average. Older housing generally consumes more energy for space heating, which is one of the most energy-intensive household activities.

In the West North Central States, electricity comes from power plants fueled primarily by coal and natural gas. Seven nuclear power plants in Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, and Nebraska also generated significant amounts of electricity for consumption. (Neither North or South Dakota had nuclear power plants in 2001.) State prices of electricity per kWh to residential consumers in 2001 ranged from 6.5 cents in Nebraska and North Dakota to 8.4 cents in Iowa. The average price in the West North Central Division was 7.4 cents, a little below the U.S. average of 8.6 cents. Thirty percent of West North Central households were eligible for government assistance in paying their energy bills, compared with 32 percent of U.S. households.


WEST NORTH CENTRAL HOUSEHOLD ELECTRICITY CONSUMPTION IN 2001

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In 2001, electricity consumption by the household sector totaled 81 billion kilowatthours (Table D4-1), 7.1 percent of the U.S. total. Just over one in ten households relied on electricity as the main source of space heat. The relatively small population and the low share of households using electric heat offset the effects of a cold climate and an aging housing stock, both of which tend to increase total electricity consumption in a given region. Demand for electricity for air-conditioning, typically one of the largest energy end uses, was lower in the West North Central States, where summer weather is normally cooler than it is on average across the country. On the other hand, most household appliances were more common in West North Central households than in U.S. households. An average household in the West North Central Division consumed 10,930 kilowatthours (kWh) of electricity in 2001, close to the national average of 10,656 kWh. The most significant end use was the operation of kitchen appliances.

HVAC and Water Heating

In the West North Central States, the share of household electricity consumption devoted to space and water heating, air-conditioning, and ventilation was slightly lower than in the United States as a whole: 37 percent of the West North Central total (Figure D4-1), compared with 40 percent of the U.S. total (Figure US-1).

Access to natural gas was common in the West North Central Division. Eight out of ten households had access to natural gas, and most used natural gas, rather than electricity, for space and water heating. Out of the 7.4 million households, only 0.8 million used electricity as their main energy source for space heating. The 6.6 billion kWh of electricity consumed for space heating (Figure D4-2) accounted for just 8.2 percent of Division’s total household electricity consumption in 2001. Almost three times as many households – 2.2 million – used electricity for water heating, but the share of households using electric water heaters (30 percent) was still smaller than the share of U.S. households (38 percent). The 6.2 billion kWh consumed for water heating in the West North Central States represented a 7.7-percent share of household electricity consumption for all end uses.

Air-conditioning use of electricity totaled 12 billion kWh (Figure D4-2). The air-conditioning share of total electricity consumption in the West North Central was about the same as in the United States as a whole: 15 percent and 16 percent, respectively. Although the West North Central region is considerably cooler in the summer, the share of households using air-conditioning in 2001 (91 percent) was similar to the share in the South (95 percent).

Sixty-five percent of West North Central households used central air-conditioning in 2001, compared with 54 percent of U.S. households. Another factor tending to drive up electricity demand in the region was the age of equipment. Both central air-conditioning systems and room units were older in the West North Central Division than in the United States as a whole in 2001. Older equipment is generally less efficient and, as would be expected, West North Central room units used more electricity per unit and per household than the U.S. averages. An offsetting factor was that West North Central households averaged fewer room units than did U.S. households. In contrast to the situation with room units, however, central air-conditioning consumed less electricity per household in the West North Central Division: 2,071 kWh per household in 2001, lower than the U.S. average of 2,796 kWh per household. Although central air-conditioning systems in the West North Central Division were older, that factor could have been offset by the effects of the colder climate.

Ceiling fans, dehumidifiers, and humidifiers all were more prevalent in the West North Central Division than in the United States as a whole. Together, they accounted for 2.2 percent of total household electricity consumption in the Division, compared with 1.3 percent of the U.S. total.

Kitchen and Laundry Appliances

The operation of kitchen appliances by West North Central households consumed 24 billion kWh (Figure D4-3) and accounted for a 29-percent share of the total, about the same share as heating, ventilation, and cooling. In the Division, as elsewhere, refrigerators consumed more electricity than all other kitchen appliances combined. Generally, older refrigerators are less efficient than newer models and will consume more electricity per unit; however, per-unit electricity consumption in 2001 was about the same in the Division as in the United States, even though a higher percentage of refrigerators in the Division were old. Forty-seven percent of Division “most used” refrigerators were older than 9 years, compared with 32 percent of U.S. refrigerators. Seventy percent of second refrigerators were older than 9 years, compared with 59 percent of U.S. refrigerators. In addition, second refrigerators were more common in the Division than nationwide.

Among kitchen appliances, separate freezers are the second-highest consumers of electricity. Forty-eight percent of West North Central households had at least one, but only 32 percent of U.S. households did. Per-unit electricity consumption by freezers was somewhat lower in the West North Central States (933 kWh, compared with U.S. per-unit consumption of 1039 kWh), even though the shares of freezers older than 9 years were about the same. The colder weather in the West North Central States could have restrained electricity demand for freezers, as well as for refrigerators.

Clothes washers and dryers were more common in West North Central households. Clothes washers were found in 86 percent of households, and clothes dryers were found in 67 percent of households (compared with 79 percent and 57 percent, respectively, of U.S. households). One possible explanation for the greater likelihood of finding a clothes washer or dryer in a household in the West North Central Division is the greater prevalence of detached, single-family housing units. Those housing units are larger, on average, than other housing units (such as apartments and mobile homes), making it easier for households living in them to have their own sets of appliances.

Clothes dryers used more electricity than any other major U.S. household appliance except refrigerators in 2001. Nationwide, they consumed more than six times as much as clothes washers and accounted for a 5.8-percent share of household electricity consumption. In the West North Central States, an even larger share (7.1 percent) of the Division total was devoted to drying clothes. Per-household electricity consumption for clothes drying in the West North Central Division averaged 1,158 kWh in 2001, similar to the U.S. average of 1,079.

Lighting and Home Electronics

Lighting and home electronics were both significant electricity end uses in the West North Central Division in 2001. Lighting (including indoor and outdoor uses) consumed 7.0 billion kWh, an 8.6-percent share of total household electricity consumption. Home electronics consumed 5.6 billion kWh (Figure D4-4), 7.0 percent of household electricity consumption. Large screen TVs were less prevalent; 26 percent of Division households had them, compared with 34 percent of U.S. households. Similarly, fewer Division households had cable boxes, perhaps reflecting availability. Satellite dishes were more common in the Division; 18 percent of households had them, while only 11 percent of households nationwide did.


THE OUTLOOK FOR ELECTRICITY PRICES AND CONSUMPTION

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EIA’s Short-Term Energy Outlook (March 2006) provides projections for the West North Central Census Division. The Outlook indicates that, due to weather conditions and continuing economic growth, electricity demand is expected to increase over the short term (from 2005 to 2007) in the United States as a whole and in almost every U.S. Census Division. The average of retail sales of electricity to the U.S. residential sector is projected to increase 2.2 percent, while sales in the West North Central Division increase 1.2 percent. In response to higher utility fuel prices, electricity prices in the United States as a whole and in all U.S. Census Divisions, including the West North Central, are expected to increase. The price of electricity sold to the West North Central’s residential sector is projected to rise to 8.2 cents per kWh in 2007, while the national average is projected to rise to 9.9 cents per kWh.

Over the long term, electricity demand in the West North Central States is expected to grow, and prices, when adjusted for inflation, are expected to be about the same in 2030 as they were in 2004. EIA’s Annual Energy Outlook 2006 indicates that, from 2004 to 2030, retail sales of electricity to residential consumers in the West North Central States are projected to grow at an average annual rate of 1.4 percent per year, compared with a projected growth rate of 1.5 percent per year for sales to all U.S. residential consumers. West North Central prices of residential electricity are projected to be the same in 2030 as they were in 2004, while U.S. prices are projected to be 4.5 percent lower.


EFFICIENCY STANDARDS IN THE WEST NORTH CENTRAL STATES

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The Midwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (MEEA) is a regional network of organizations that promotes energy efficiency in the Midwest, which includes the West North Central States. The Missouri Energy Center in the Missouri Department of Natural Resources and the Minnesota Department of Commerce were among the founding members. MEEA’s first regional program (2001) promoted energy-efficient compact fluorescent light bulbs. MEEA has administered rebate programs for refrigerators and clothes washers and has worked to inform State legislators about the effects of energy-efficient products on energy consumption.

Minnesota is the only one of the West North Central States to have established minimum energy-efficiency standards for such residential energy uses as fluorescent lamp ballasts, but several Federal initiatives address appliance and equipment standards in all States. For example, the Energy Policy Act of 2005 covers residential appliances such as ceiling fans and light kits, dehumidifiers, torchieres, and fluorescent lamps and ballasts. New tax credits for energy-efficient windows, insulation, doors, roofs, and heating and cooling equipment in households became effective this year and can be expected to affect residential energy consumption in the West North Central States and elsewhere. Air-conditioners manufactured after January 23, 2006, are required to have a minimum Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio (SEER) of 13, which is 30 percent more efficient than the current SEER standard of 10. In January 2006, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) published a new 5-year plan to issue efficiency standards for 18 products, including residential furnaces, air-conditioners, dishwashers, and clothes dryers. In March 2006, DOE announced that new, more stringent criteria, are due to go into effect on January 1, 2007, for ENERGY STAR dishwashers. As announced previously, new criteria for ENERGY STAR clothes washers also will become effective on January 1, 2007.