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Energy Use in Industry

Basics
In Depth

The United States is a highly industrialized country. Industry accounts for about one-third of the energy used in the country.

There are a variety of different energy sources used in the industrial sector. Energy sources can be used as boiler fuel, which is used to generate steam or hot water. Energy sources can also be used in process heating, which is used to raise the temperature of products in the manufacturing process. Energy sources are also used as feedstocks to make products.

Industry uses many energy sources

Other energy sources account for 38% of the energy manufacturers' use of heat, power, and electricity generation. Included in these sources are steam, pulping liquor from paper making, agricultural waste, tree wood, wood residues from mill processing, and wood-related and paper-related refuse.

In the manufacturing sector, the predominant energy sources are natural gas and electricity (a secondary source).

Manufacturers also use several other energy sources for heat, power, and electricity generation:

Steam
Pulping liquor from paper making
Agricultural waste
Tree wood
Wood residues from mill processing
Wood-related and paper-related refuse

Energy use by type of industry

Every industry uses energy, but there are a handful of energy-intensive industries that use most of the energy consumed by the industrial sector.

The petroleum refining industry is the largest industrial consumer of energy, followed closely by the chemical industry. The refining, chemical, paper, and metal industries combine to use 96% of energy feedstocks; 60% of energy consumed for heat, power, and electricity generation; and 78% of total energy use.

Energy sources used as feedstocks

Many energy sources like coal and petroleum are used in manufacturing. When raw materials are used in the manufacturing process, they are called feedstocks.

Liquefied petroleum gas, coal, natural gas, and other, less common sources were used as energy-related feedstocks in 2010:

Liquefied petroleum gas (33%)
Coal (8%)
Natural gas (8%)
Other, less common sources (49%)

Last updated: December 18, 2014

The industrial sector consists of all facilities and equipment used for producing, processing, or assembling goods. The industrial sector encompasses manufacturing, agriculture, construction, fishing, forestry, and mining (including oil and natural gas extraction).

The most energy-intensive industries in the United States are those that produce petroleum, chemicals, paper and wood products, steel, and aluminum.

More data

U.S. petroleum refining consumes the most energy in the industrial sector

Petroleum refining accounted for about 29% of U.S. industrial primary energy consumption in 2010.¹ Most of the energy consumed is in the form of byproducts of the refining process.

The petroleum refining industry uses energy both to supply heat and power for plant operations and as a raw material for the production of petrochemicals and other non-fuel products. The U.S. petroleum refining industry consumed about 5.9 quadrillion British thermal units (Btu) of primary energy in 2010 for fuel and non-fuel (feedstock) uses.

The top six refining states are Texas, Louisiana, California, Illinois, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey.

The U.S. chemical industry is the second-largest industrial consumer of energy

The chemical industry is the second-largest industrial consumer of energy for its distillation, catalytic, and electrochemical reactors. The U.S. chemical industry consumed about 5 quadrillion Btu of primary energy in 2010 for fuel and non-fuel (feedstock) uses. This was about 25% of all U.S. industrial primary energy use in 2010.

The U.S. paper products industry is the third-largest industrial user of energy

The paper products industry consumed nearly 2.11 quadrillion Btu of energy in 2010 for fuel and non-fuel (feedstock) uses. This was about 11% of total U.S. industrial primary energy use, making the paper products industry the third-largest industrial consumer of energy in the United States. The paper products industry uses pulping residues and byproducts for a large portion of its own energy needs.

The metals industry is the fourth-largest industrial consumer of energy

The metals industry uses energy sources both to supply heat and power for plant operations and as a raw material for the production of coal coke for use in blast furnaces. The U.S. metals industry used about 1.6 quadrillion Btu of energy in 2010, equal to about 8% of total industrial primary energy consumption.

In the metals industry, the iron and steel industry consumed about 1.1 quadrillion Btu of primary energy in 2010 for fuel and non-fuel (feedstock) uses.

¹2010 is the most recent year for which detailed data on manufacturing energy use are available.