The charts on this page show economic and energy consumption indicators for Connecticut that demonstrate the importance of energy efficiency to the state's economy and statistics such as population and economic growth that affect energy consumption. You can also see a graph measuring the state's progress toward its goal for reducing energy intensity set by Congress in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct). You can link to the following graphs on this page:
As part of EPAct 2005, Congress asked states to set a goal to reduce their energy consumption intensity to 25% below 1990 levels by 2012 and report to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and Congress about progress toward this goal. Two ways of measuring energy consumption intensity are per capita and per dollar of gross state product. DOE will determine soon which of these two measurements states will use to report progress toward their EPAct goals in 2012.
| Total energy consumption in Connecticut in 2005 (trillion Btu) |
900,207 |
|---|---|
| State rank | 33 |
| Average annual increase in Connecticut total energy consumption 1980–2005 | 0.8% |
|---|---|
| State rank for annual percent growth | 38 |
Source: DOE Energy Information Administration State Energy Consumption, Price, and Expenditure Estimates (SEDS database). Note that 2005 is the latest year for which state-by-state data are available from EIA. EIA also publishes a chart summarizing total energy consumption in 2005 by state and organized by sector (PDF 27 KB). Download Adobe Reader.
One measure of the energy intensity of the Connecticut economy deals with the gross measure of total energy consumed divided by the state population. This per capita indicator is a good measure of energy consumption because decisions by individual consumers have an important effect on overall energy consumption.
Source: EIA (SEDS database). EIA also publishes a state ranking of per capita energy consumption that is organized by fuel type (PDF 21 KB). Download Adobe Reader.
(million Btu)
| Connecticut per capita energy consumption in 2005 (million Btu) |
258 |
|---|---|
| U.S. per capita energy consumption (million Btu) |
339 |
| State rank for per capita energy consumption | 44 |
| Average annual increase in Connecticut per capita energy consumption 1980–2005 | 0.3% |
|---|---|
| U.S. average annual increase | 0 |
| State rank for annual percent growth | 22 |
| EPAct goal for per capita energy consumption in Connecticut in 2012 (million Btu) |
176.2 |
|---|---|
| Comparison with 25% below per capita total energy consumption for the United States in 1990 (million Btu) |
255.6 |
| State rank for per capita EPAct goal | 49 |
Many world political leaders use an energy intensity indicator that compares energy consumption with gross economic output instead of with population. For the United States, the economy is growing much faster than the population, which causes this graph to decrease more quickly (represented by an downward slope of the curve) than the graph above based on population (that is relatively flat).
(million Btu / current dollars)
Sources: DOE Energy Information Administration SEDS database, U.S. Department of Commerce, and the Northeast Midwest Institute.
| Total energy consumption in Connecticut per dollar of gross state product in 2005 (million Btu / $) |
4.7 |
|---|---|
| U.S. total energy consumption per gross national product (million Btu / $) |
8.1 |
| State rank | 49 |
current dollars - show chained-2000 dollars
(million)
Population strongly affects energy consumption, but population growth is equally or more important to the energy economy as the overall size of the population. This is because states undergoing more rapid growth often face challenges about how to build and finance energy infrastructure than do states with stable populations.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau (Text 1 KB).
| Connecticut population in 2005 | 3,486,000 |
|---|---|
| Percent of U.S. population | 1.2% |
| State rank | 29 |
| Average annual increase in Connecticut population 1980–2005 | 0.4% |
|---|---|
| U.S. average annual increase | 1.0% |
| Percent growth state rank | 38 |
Economic growth has a very strong impact on energy consumption. Most analysts expect states with larger economies to consume more energy. However, the rate of growth in the economy is just as important to energy planners as overall size because fast-growing economies require larger investments in energy infrastructure.
Income also affects energy consumption. Families with higher incomes often spend more on energy than do low-income families. However, lower income families tend to spend a much greater percentage of their discretionary incomes on energy than do moderate- and high-income families.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Department of Commerce, and the Northeast Midwest Institute
(million current dollars)
| Connecticut gross product in 2006 (million) |
$204,134 |
|---|---|
| Connecticut percent of total U.S. economy | 1.6% |
| State rank | 23 |
current dollars - show chained-2000 dollars
| Average annual increase in Connecticut gross state product 1980–2006 | 4.4% |
|---|---|
| Average annual increase in gross national product | 5.1% |
| State rank for economic growth | 43 |
current dollars - show chained-2000 dollars
| Connecticut per capita income in 2005 | $47,388 |
|---|---|
| Per capita U.S. income | $34,471 |
| State rank | 2 |
(percent)
Prices for energy vary across the country, depending on factors such as supply and demand. Many economists think of low-cost energy as a cornerstone to economic prosperity. One measure of this cost is the ratio of total state energy expenditures per dollar of gross state product.
Source: DOE Energy Information Administration SEDS database. EIA also publishes a table that ranks energy prices, expenditures, and per capita energy expenditures in 2005 by state (PDF 20 KB). Download Adobe Reader.
| Connecticut expenditures for energy as a percentage of gross state product 2005 | 6.4% |
|---|---|
| U.S. energy spending per gross national product | 8.4% |
| State rank | 47 |
Analysts and political leaders sometimes look at the breakdown of energy consumption when considering energy policies aimed at conservation and increasing energy efficiency.
Unfortunately, this breakdown of consumption misses the key role that advances in technology and energy efficiency play in reducing consumption. The DOE Energy Information Administration (EIA) uses a "frozen technology scenario" to project energy savings from efficiency since 1980 as if technology did not advance after that year. Savings from efficiency investments compound over time. If one were to compound these savings since 1980, they would be equal to the annual equivalents of all energy obtained from petroleum and coal.
In 2005, energy consumption in Connecticut divided into the major energy consuming sectors as follows:
(million Btu)
| Commercial | 24% |
|---|---|
| Percent state rank | 5 |
| Industrial | 14% |
| Percent state rank | 46 |
| Residential | 33% |
| Percent state rank | 2 |
| Transportation | 29% |
| Percent state rank | 22 |
Source: DOE Energy Information Administration SEDS database.