Analysis of the energy cost of economic activities: 1963 to 2000

Conventional measures of the ratio of energy consumed per unit of economic activity are inappropriate. Due to increasing amounts of energy embodied in imports and exports, a consumption-based ratio is more revealing. Energy conservation, defined as changes in the emphasis on the activities of final consumption, accounted for most of the decrease in the ratio between 1972 and 1980. Most of this energy conservation effect has already been achieved, according to one set of economic projections. Further decreases in the ratio must come from improvements in production energy efficiency and/or changes in distribution of consumption of industrial products in each of the final demand activities.