United States | Electricity production from nuclear sources (% of total)
Sources of electricity refer to the inputs used to generate electricity. Nuclear power refers to electricity produced by nuclear power plants. Development relevance: The generation of electricity using nuclear energy was first demonstrated in the 1950s, and the first commercial nuclear power plants entered operation in the early 1960s. Nuclear capacity grew rapidly in the 1970s and 1980s as countries sought to reduce dependence on fossil fuels, especially after the oil crises of the 1970s. There was a renewed interest in nuclear energy from 2000, and 60 new countries expressed interest in launching a nuclear program to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). However, after the earthquake and tsunami devastation of the Pacific coast of northern Japan, most nuclear countries announced safety reviews of their nuclear reactors (stress tests) and the revision/improvement of their plans to address similar emergency situations; countries such as Germany and Italy decided to eventually phase out nuclear power or to abandon their nuclear plant projects. Use of energy is important in improving people's standard of living. But electricity generation also can damage the environment. Whether such damage occurs depends largely on how electricity is generated. For example, burning coal releases twice as much carbon dioxide - a major contributor to global warming - as does burning an equivalent amount of natural gas. Anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions result primarily from fossil fuel combustion and cement manufacturing. In combustion different fossil fuels release different amounts of carbon dioxide for the same level of energy use: oil releases about 50 percent more carbon dioxide than natural gas, and coal releases about twice as much. Nuclear energy does not generate carbon dioxide emissions, but it produces other dangerous waste products. Limitations and exceptions: IEA occasionally revises its time series to reflect political changes. For example, the IEA has constructed historical energy statistics for countries of the former Soviet Union. In addition, energy statistics for other countries have undergone continuous changes in coverage or methodology in recent years as more detailed energy accounts have become available. Breaks in series are therefore unavoidable. Statistical concept and methodology: Electricity production from nuclear sources (% of total) is the share of electricity produced by nuclear power plants in total electricity production which is the total number of GWh generated by power plants separated into electricity plants and CHP plants. The International Energy Agency (IEA) compiles data on energy inputs used to generate electricity. IEA data for countries that are not members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are based on national energy data adjusted to conform to annual questionnaires completed by OECD member governments. In addition, estimates are sometimes made to complete major aggregates from which key data are missing, and adjustments are made to compensate for differences in definitions. The IEA makes these estimates in consultation with national statistical offices, oil companies, electric utilities, and national energy experts.
Publisher
The World Bank
Origin
United States of America
Records
63
Source
United States | Electricity production from nuclear sources (% of total)
0.0692778 1960
0.21517969 1961
0.26868399 1962
0.35373293 1963
0.34326063 1964
0.349964 1965
0.48734889 1966
0.59498056 1967
0.95233021 1968
0.97567778 1969
1.4363033 1970
2.38067842 1971
3.12315482 1972
4.53658569 1973
6.1946984 1974
9.12468426 1975
9.47493331 1976
11.91227232 1977
12.64814746 1978
11.46197571 1979
10.96612725 1980
11.8601212 1981
12.61190717 1982
12.71102146 1983
13.55141482 1984
15.51193797 1985
16.62598059 1986
17.76050011 1987
19.54453434 1988
17.94071139 1989
19.09537023 1990
19.95148838 1991
20.05658294 1992
19.07660872 1993
19.66840777 1994
20.05989252 1995
19.58817324 1996
18.14605334 1997
18.77048887 1998
19.92470644 1999
19.81472397 2000
20.64701468 2001
19.9811047 2002
19.42999258 2003
19.60760159 2004
18.99150762 2005
19.09223158 2006
19.34899275 2007
19.29099374 2008
19.93112298 2009
19.26644609 2010
18.98484619 2011
18.75791991 2012
19.17383116 2013
19.2302385 2014
19.32377763 2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
United States | Electricity production from nuclear sources (% of total)
Sources of electricity refer to the inputs used to generate electricity. Nuclear power refers to electricity produced by nuclear power plants. Development relevance: The generation of electricity using nuclear energy was first demonstrated in the 1950s, and the first commercial nuclear power plants entered operation in the early 1960s. Nuclear capacity grew rapidly in the 1970s and 1980s as countries sought to reduce dependence on fossil fuels, especially after the oil crises of the 1970s. There was a renewed interest in nuclear energy from 2000, and 60 new countries expressed interest in launching a nuclear program to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). However, after the earthquake and tsunami devastation of the Pacific coast of northern Japan, most nuclear countries announced safety reviews of their nuclear reactors (stress tests) and the revision/improvement of their plans to address similar emergency situations; countries such as Germany and Italy decided to eventually phase out nuclear power or to abandon their nuclear plant projects. Use of energy is important in improving people's standard of living. But electricity generation also can damage the environment. Whether such damage occurs depends largely on how electricity is generated. For example, burning coal releases twice as much carbon dioxide - a major contributor to global warming - as does burning an equivalent amount of natural gas. Anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions result primarily from fossil fuel combustion and cement manufacturing. In combustion different fossil fuels release different amounts of carbon dioxide for the same level of energy use: oil releases about 50 percent more carbon dioxide than natural gas, and coal releases about twice as much. Nuclear energy does not generate carbon dioxide emissions, but it produces other dangerous waste products. Limitations and exceptions: IEA occasionally revises its time series to reflect political changes. For example, the IEA has constructed historical energy statistics for countries of the former Soviet Union. In addition, energy statistics for other countries have undergone continuous changes in coverage or methodology in recent years as more detailed energy accounts have become available. Breaks in series are therefore unavoidable. Statistical concept and methodology: Electricity production from nuclear sources (% of total) is the share of electricity produced by nuclear power plants in total electricity production which is the total number of GWh generated by power plants separated into electricity plants and CHP plants. The International Energy Agency (IEA) compiles data on energy inputs used to generate electricity. IEA data for countries that are not members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are based on national energy data adjusted to conform to annual questionnaires completed by OECD member governments. In addition, estimates are sometimes made to complete major aggregates from which key data are missing, and adjustments are made to compensate for differences in definitions. The IEA makes these estimates in consultation with national statistical offices, oil companies, electric utilities, and national energy experts.
Publisher
The World Bank
Origin
United States of America
Records
63
Source