The presence of energy has converted the course of humanity in the last centuries. They have not only released new energy sources - the first fossil fuel accompanied by nuclear diversification, hydropower and other renewable technologies - but also in the amount we can produce and consume.
This article is focused on the amount of energy generated and power consumed. Also how these trends are changing with time and country.
Energy Generation
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Fig. 1: Global Electricity Generation Electricity generation has been steadily increasing over the years. Fig. 1 shows us that China, the United States and India are the major electricity producing countries. We can observe that the electricity generation decreased a bit in 2020. This was due to the ongoing covid-19 pandemic. We will talk more about it in the next article. Fig. 2 gives us the complete overview of the world electricity generation. Africa and Latin America have plenty of room for improvement.  | Fig. 2: Country-wise Electricity Generation |
Energy Consumption | Fig. 3: Energy Consumption by Source Energy consumption has risen exponentially in the last century. Traditionally, all the energy was consumed by biomass. But today the major sources of energy consumption are gas, oil and coal. Renewable energy sources are making their grounds steadily with developed and developing countries like India spending more on renewable energy sources than non-renewables but we still have a long way to go (Fig. 3). Fig. 4: Global Energy ConsumptionIn Fig. 4 we can see that the demand for power has been increasing with the rise of globalization. Owing to the rapid industrialization, India and China’s energy consumption has increased many fold. On the other hand due to its vast population, India’s per capita energy consumption is still very low (Fig. 5). The United States and Canada top this map with per capita consumption as high as 75,000 kWh. Fun fact: Per capita energy consumption in Bangladesh, for example, is in the range of 2,000 to 3,000 kilowatt-hours. In Oman, it’s over 200,000 kilowatt-hours. Fig. 5: Per capita energy consumption (2019) Power Consumption in India The above graph gives us an idea about electricity consumption in India. One can observe that more developed states like Goa, Maharashtra or Gujarat consume more energy per capita as compared to the underdeveloped states like Bihar or Uttar Pradesh. Conclusion From the above statistics one can conclude that we still have a long way to go in terms of equal energy production and consumption in the world. Countries in Africa and Latin America are lagging behind in this aspect which is hindering their growth. Access to electricity is a basic human right and the developed countries should come forward to aid those in need.
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