Energy statistics refers to collecting, compiling, analyzing and disseminating data on commodities such as

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when ...

, crude oil,

natural gas Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbo ...

electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as describ ...

, or renewable energy sources ( biomass, geothermal,

wind Wind is the natural movement of air or other gases relative to a planet's surface. Winds occur on a range of scales, from thunderstorm flows lasting tens of minutes, to local breezes generated by heating of land surfaces and lasting a few ho ...

or solar energy), when they are used for the energy they contain.

Energy In physics, energy (from Ancient Greek: ἐνέργεια, ''enérgeia'', “activity”) is the quantitative property that is transferred to a body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of work and in the form of hea ...

is the capability of some substances, resulting from their physico-chemical properties, to do

work Work may refer to: * Work (human activity), intentional activity people perform to support themselves, others, or the community ** Manual labour, physical work done by humans ** House work, housework, or homemaking ** Working animal, an animal t ...

or produce

heat In thermodynamics, heat is defined as the form of energy crossing the boundary of a thermodynamic system by virtue of a temperature difference across the boundary. A thermodynamic system does not ''contain'' heat. Nevertheless, the term is ...

. Some energy commodities, called

fuels A fuel is any material that can be made to react with other substances so that it releases energy as thermal energy or to be used for work. The concept was originally applied solely to those materials capable of releasing chemical energy but ...

, release their energy content as heat when they

burn A burn is an injury to skin, or other tissues, caused by heat, cold, electricity, chemicals, friction, or ultraviolet radiation (like sunburn). Most burns are due to heat from hot liquids (called scalding), solids, or fire. Burns occur ma ...

. This heat could be used to run an

internal Internal may refer to: *Internality as a concept in behavioural economics *Neijia, internal styles of Chinese martial arts *Neigong or "internal skills", a type of exercise in meditation associated with Daoism *''Internal (album)'' by Safia, 2016 ...

external combustion engine An external combustion engine (EC engine) is a reciprocating heat engine where a working fluid, contained internally, is heated by combustion in an external source, through the engine wall or a heat exchanger. The fluid then, by expanding an ...

. The need to have statistics on energy commodities became obvious during the 1973 oil crisis that brought tenfold increase in petroleum prices. Before the crisis, to have accurate data on global energy supply and demand was not deemed critical. Another concern of energy statistics today is a huge gap in energy use between developed and developing countries. As the gap narrows (''see picture''), the pressure on energy supply increases tremendously. The data on energy and electricity come from three principal sources: * Energy industry * Other industries ("self-producers") * Consumers The flows of and trade in energy commodities are measured both in physical units (e.g.,

metric ton The tonne ( or ; symbol: t) is a unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. It is a non-SI unit accepted for use with SI. It is also referred to as a metric ton to distinguish it from the non-metric units of the short ton ( United State ...

s), and, when energy balances are calculated, in energy units (e.g.,

terajoule The joule ( , ; symbol: J) is the unit of energy in the International System of Units (SI). It is equal to the amount of work done when a force of 1 newton displaces a mass through a distance of 1 metre in the direction of the force applied. ...

s or tons of oil equivalent). What makes energy statistics specific and different from other fields of

economic statistics Economic statistics is a topic in applied statistics and applied economics that concerns the collection, processing, compilation, dissemination, and analysis of economic data. It is closely related to business statistics and econometrics. It ...

is the fact that energy commodities undergo greater number of transformations (flows) than other commodities. In these transformations energy is conserved, as defined by and within the limitations of the

first First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

and second laws of thermodynamics.

External links

Statistical Energy Database Review: Enerdata Yearbook 2012

International Energy Agency: Statistics

The Oslo Group on Energy Statistics

DOE Energy Information Administration

Year of Energy 2009

European Energy Statistics & Key Indicators

Publications

Statistical data sets Energy Applied statistics

See also

External links

Publications