85+ Manufacturing Energy Statistics for 2025-2026

Total Manufacturing Energy Consumption Overview

The US manufacturing sector is the single largest consumer of energy within the industrial economy. It draws on a mix of natural gas, electricity, petroleum products, coal, biomass, and hydrogen, using energy both as fuel for heat and power and as feedstock for chemical and materials production. The EIA's Manufacturing Energy Consumption Survey (MECS) is conducted every four years and is the most authoritative source for national manufacturing energy data. The 2022 MECS, released beginning in 2025, provides the most current benchmarks available.

• 01 US manufacturing consumed 20,658 trillion Btu of energy in 2022, a 6.3% increase from 19,436 trillion Btu in 2018. (EIA MECS 2022)
• 02 This was the third consecutive increase in manufacturing energy consumption since the sector hit a modern low in 2010. (EIA, March 2025)
• 03 Manufacturing accounts for 76% of all industrial sector energy use, with mining (12%), construction (7%), and agriculture (4%) making up the remainder. (EIA Energy Explained)
• 04 The industrial sector as a whole accounted for 35% of total US end-use energy consumption and 33% of total US energy consumption in 2022. (EIA Energy Explained)
• 05 Total US energy consumption was 94.2 quads in 2024, remaining below the 2007 peak of 99.0 quads. (EIA, 2025)
• 06 MECS surveys approximately 15,000 manufacturing establishments, representing 97% to 98% of the manufacturing payroll, making it the most comprehensive national dataset available. (EIA MECS methodology)
• 07 Manufacturing energy consumption covers 79 different industry subsectors and groups, measured every four years since the first MECS in 1985. (EIA MECS program overview)
• 08 Fuel use accounted for approximately 68% of total manufacturing energy and nonfuel feedstocks accounted for 32% based on MECS 2018 data. (EIA Energy Explained)
• 09 On average, energy represents approximately 2% of revenues for the US manufacturing sector as a whole, though it is significantly higher for energy-intensive subsectors. (Ganapati, Shapiro, Walker, Journal of Political Economy)

Energy Consumption by Manufacturing Subsector

Energy use is highly concentrated in a handful of process-intensive subsectors. The chemical and petroleum industries alone account for the majority of manufacturing energy demand, reflecting the fundamental role of energy as both a fuel and a raw material in those industries.

• 10 Six energy-intensive manufacturing subsectors (chemicals, petroleum and coal products, paper, primary metals, food, and nonmetallic minerals) accounted for 87% of total manufacturing energy consumption based on MECS 2018 data. (EIA Energy Explained)
• 11 The chemical manufacturing subsector alone consumed 7,141 trillion Btu in 2018, more than any other subsector, driven by massive feedstock use (4,326 TBtu of nonfuel energy). (EIA Energy Explained)
• 12 Chemical manufacturers accounted for approximately 70% of total nonfuel energy feedstock use by manufacturing and 22% of total US manufacturing sector energy use in 2018. (EIA Energy Explained)
• 13 The three largest energy-consuming subsectors (chemicals, petroleum and coal products, and paper) combined consumed nearly 70% of total manufacturing energy use in 2018. (EIA Energy Explained)
• 14 In the 2022 MECS, four subsectors (chemical, petroleum and coal products, paper, and primary metals) accounted for most of total manufacturing energy consumption, continuing the concentration seen in prior surveys. (EIA MECS 2022)
• 15 Six sectors (chemicals, petroleum and coal products, primary metals, nonmetallic minerals, food, and paper) together consumed 9,893 trillion Btu (82%) of offsite-produced fuel consumed in manufacturing in 2022. (EIA MECS 2022 Release 1-2)
• 16 Establishments with the largest value of shipments and receipts accounted for over half of energy consumption in 2022, confirming that energy intensity skews heavily toward large-scale operations. (EIA MECS 2022)
• 17 At the national level, total consumption was similar across employment size categories, meaning energy intensity does not directly track headcount. (EIA MECS 2022)
• 18 Iron, steel, cement, and primary chemical sectors together contribute approximately 17% of global carbon emissions, classifying them as critical targets for industrial decarbonization. (Nature Reviews Clean Technology, 2025)

Energy Sources: Natural Gas, Electricity, Coal, and Renewables

Natural gas is the dominant fuel in US manufacturing, and its share has grown steadily since 2010. Electricity is the second most significant purchased energy source. Coal use, despite environmental pressure, increased between 2018 and 2022. Renewable energy remains a small fraction of direct manufacturing energy, though onsite solar and biomass are growing.

• 19 Natural gas is the most-used fuel across all manufacturing end uses, including process heat, boilers, cogeneration, and space heating. (EIA MECS 2022)
• 20 Natural gas consumption by manufacturing increased by more than all other energy sources combined between 2018 and 2022. (EIA, March 2025)
• 21 Natural gas and hydrocarbon gas liquids (HGLs) together are increasing their combined shares of total manufacturing fuel consumption, continuing a multi-decade trend. (EIA MECS 2022)
• 22 Most manufacturing subsectors cannot easily switch from natural gas to alternative fuels such as coal, electricity, or renewables, limiting near-term decarbonization options. (EIA MECS 2022)
• 23 HGLs (excluding natural gasoline) accounted for 46% of total US manufacturing feedstock use in 2018, used primarily as raw materials for plastics and chemical production. (EIA Energy Explained)
• 24 Coal accounted for 7% of total manufacturing feedstock use in 2018, with about 60% going to primary metals manufacturers (mostly iron and steel production). (EIA Energy Explained)
• 25 Onsite non-combustible renewable electricity generation in manufacturing grew 125% between 2018 and 2022, from 4 to 9 trillion Btu, a statistically significant shift. (EIA MECS 2022 Preliminary Estimates)
• 26 Residual fuel oil use in manufacturing fell 44.07% between 2018 and 2022, from 59 to just 33 trillion Btu. Petroleum coke use also fell 17.13%, from 753 to 624 trillion Btu. (EIA MECS 2022)
• 27 Hydrogen first use by US manufacturers totaled 170 trillion Btu in 2022, more than twice the first use of distillate fuel oil (81 trillion Btu). This was the first MECS iteration to separately track hydrogen. (EIA, March 2025)
• 28 Agricultural waste consumption in manufacturing grew 100% between 2018 and 2022, from 50 to 100 trillion Btu, reflecting growing adoption of biomass energy in food and other sectors. (EIA MECS 2022)
• 29 Most natural gas and steam were purchased from nonutilities by manufacturing establishments in 2022, reflecting the industrial market structure for energy procurement. (EIA MECS 2022)
• 30 Nonfuel (feedstock) consumption is dominant in the chemicals sector, where it accounts for more than 60% of total energy use. This is a key reason why chemical manufacturing energy is so hard to decarbonize. (EIA MECS 2022)

Manufacturing Energy Expenditures and Costs

While energy represents roughly 2% of average manufacturing revenues, that average hides enormous variation. For a cement plant or aluminum smelter, energy can represent 30-40% of production costs. For a precision machining shop, it might be under 5%. Understanding where your sector sits on this spectrum determines how much energy strategy matters to your competitive position.

• 31 The top five energy-consuming sectors account for about three-fourths of all manufacturing energy expenditures in 2022. (EIA MECS 2022)
• 32 The chemical sector alone accounted for 40% of all manufacturing energy expenditures in 2022. (EIA MECS 2022 Release 1-2)
• 33 Chemicals, petroleum and coal products, primary metals, nonmetallic minerals, food, and paper sectors together accounted for 74% of total manufacturing energy expenditures in 2022. (EIA MECS 2022 Release 1-2)
• 34 Total US energy expenditures (all sectors) rose 22% to more than $1.7 trillion in 2022, adjusted for inflation, driven by post-pandemic demand recovery and supply disruptions. (EIA State Energy Data System)
• 35 On average, energy costs represent approximately 2% of revenues for US manufacturers overall, though for energy-intensive industries such as aluminum, cement, and glass, energy can represent 30-40% of production costs. (Ganapati, Shapiro, Walker)
• 36 The average US industrial electricity price was 7.95 cents per kWh in May 2024, up from 7.82 cents per kWh in the same period a year earlier, continuing a multi-year upward trend. (Statista / EIA Electric Power Monthly)
• 37 Industrial natural gas prices for US electricity generation averaged $3.29 per MMBtu in 2023, declining from higher 2022 levels as supply stabilized. (EIA Short-Term Energy Outlook)
• 38 The BLS Manufacturing Sector Energy Costs index tracks energy cost trends in the sector from 1987 through 2023, providing long-run benchmarks for cost-of-production modeling. (Federal Reserve FRED / BLS)
• 39 Growth in manufacturing gross output has consistently outpaced growth in manufacturing energy consumption since the early 2000s, indicating structural improvements in energy intensity even as absolute consumption rises. (EIA MECS 2022)

Manufacturing Energy Management and Efficiency

Energy efficiency in manufacturing has improved substantially over the past three decades. Output per unit of energy consumed is higher than at any point in industrial history. But the gap between best-in-class facilities and the median plant remains significant. Programs like DOE's Industrial Assessment Centers and EPA's ENERGY STAR plant certification document both the opportunity and the barriers.

• 40 More than 40% of manufacturing establishments participated in general energy management activities in 2022, according to the third set of MECS 2022 results released in December 2025. (EIA MECS 2022 Release 1-3)
• 41 Less than 1% of manufacturing establishments had cogeneration (combined heat and power) technologies in place in 2022, despite the proven energy cost savings CHP delivers. (EIA MECS 2022 Release 1-3)
• 42 The largest shares of onsite cogeneration and onsite generation from other sources were located in the South, reflecting both industrial concentration and regulatory environment. (EIA MECS 2022 Release 1-3)
• 43 Improving energy efficiency is important for the top energy-consuming subsectors, which face the greatest exposure to energy price volatility and carbon pricing risk. (EIA MECS 2022 Release 1-3)
• 44 Price changes alone would not affect the switch to alternative fuels for most manufacturers, indicating that price signals are insufficient to drive fuel switching without technology development or regulatory mandates. (EIA MECS 2022 Release 1-3)
• 45 The EPA recognized 103 US manufacturing plants with ENERGY STAR certification in 2023, a designation reserved for plants in the top quartile for energy efficiency within their industry category. (EPA, March 2024)
• 46 The DOE's Industrial Assessment Centers (IAC) program has provided nearly 20,000 no-cost energy assessments for small and medium manufacturers, with more than 147,000 improvement recommendations made to date. (DOE, Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains)
• 47 Growth in manufacturing gross output continues to outpace energy consumption growth, meaning manufacturers are producing more economic value per unit of energy consumed over time. (EIA MECS 2022)
• 48 The DOE's Industrial Efficiency and Decarbonization Office tracks major accomplishments annually. In 2023, the office funded projects across advanced heat pumps, industrial electrification, and process intensification for domestic manufacturers. (DOE IEDO, 2024)
• 49 Many paper mills operate combined heat and power plants that burn purchased natural gas or black liquor from pulping operations, representing one of manufacturing's most established energy integration practices. (EIA Energy Explained)

Industrial Decarbonization and Clean Energy Investment

The industrial sector is widely considered the hardest part of the economy to decarbonize. Unlike transportation or buildings, many manufacturing processes require very high temperatures or use energy as a chemical feedstock, making direct electrification impossible without fundamental process redesign. Still, clean energy investment in manufacturing has accelerated sharply since 2022, driven by the Inflation Reduction Act and competitive pressure from European carbon pricing.

• 50 The Inflation Reduction Act included $369 billion in climate and clean energy provisions, representing the largest single climate investment in US history. (GIIA, 2024)
• 51 New investment in clean energy manufacturing and deployment grew 36% from 2023 to 2024, totaling $284 billion. (Business Council for Sustainable Energy, citing Clean Investment Monitor)
• 52 The IRA, IIJA, and Chips and Science Act together catalyzed over $1 trillion in private investment, including $449 billion in electronics and semiconductors, $184 billion in EV and batteries, and $215 billion in clean power. (Inflation Reduction Act implementation data, White House, January 2025)
• 53 Companies announced $133 billion in clean energy technology and EV manufacturing investments in the two years following IRA passage in August 2022, per MIT Clean Investment Monitor. (CNBC, August 2024 / MIT Clean Investment Monitor)
• 54 The industrial sector accounts for one-third of the nation's energy-related CO2 emissions and is generally considered hard to decarbonize due to the diversity and complexity of energy inputs and processes. (DOE / Idaho National Laboratory Gateway, 2024)
• 55 US energy-related CO2 emissions declined by 23 million metric tons in 2024, with notable reductions in the industrial and residential sectors. (EIA, 2025)
• 56 Electrification is expected to contribute 23% of cumulative emissions reductions across eight hard-to-abate manufacturing and transportation sectors, per the Net Zero Industry Tracker 2024. (World Economic Forum / Net Zero Industry Tracker 2024)
• 57 Iron, steel, cement, and primary chemical sectors contribute approximately 17% of global carbon emissions, making them priority targets despite the technical difficulty of decarbonizing their core processes. (Nature Reviews Clean Technology, 2025)
• 58 The DOE's Industrial Decarbonization Roadmap identifies four key technology pillars for industrial decarbonization: energy efficiency, industrial electrification, low-carbon fuels and feedstocks, and carbon capture. (DOE Industrial Decarbonization Roadmap)
• 59 Nonfuel (feedstock) consumption is greatest in chemical manufacturing, where process changes required to eliminate fossil feedstocks would require fundamental redesign of production chains. (EIA MECS 2022)
• 60 Combustion emissions in the United States are more than 99% CO2, meaning carbon intensity of manufacturing is almost entirely driven by energy source mix rather than combustion efficiency. (Congressional Budget Office, 2024)

Energy Prices for Industrial Users

Industrial energy prices in the US are generally lower than in Europe, which is a significant competitive advantage for US manufacturers, especially in energy-intensive sectors. But within the US, industrial electricity prices vary considerably by state, driven by generation mix, grid infrastructure, and regulatory environment.

• 61 US industrial electricity prices averaged 7.95 cents per kilowatt-hour in May 2024, up from 7.82 cents/kWh a year earlier. (Statista / EIA Electric Power Monthly)
• 62 Industrial electricity prices peaked in summer 2022 before declining as natural gas supply increased. Prices have trended modestly upward since 2023. (Statista / EIA)
• 63 The natural gas price for US electricity generation averaged $3.29/MMBtu in 2023 and was expected to average $2.91/MMBtu in 2024, per EIA Short-Term Energy Outlook projections. (EIA STEO, January 2024)
• 64 US wholesale electricity prices were lower and less volatile in 2024 compared to 2023, driven by a changing generation mix with more solar and wind capacity online. (EIA, 2025)
• 65 US electricity generation increased 3%, or 121.2 billion kWh, in the Lower 48 states in 2024, with renewable sources providing the bulk of new generation. (EIA, 2025)
• 66 Texas commercial electricity rates averaged 8.19 cents per kWh recently, reflecting the state's deregulated market and significant wind generation, making it one of the more competitive industrial electricity markets in the country. (Choose Energy, February 2026)
• 67 The EIA publishes detailed average price of electricity to ultimate customers by state and sector, providing granular benchmarking data for site selection and energy cost modeling. (EIA Electric Power Annual)
• 68 Most manufacturers purchase electricity from electric utilities or independent power producers; some generate electricity onsite using purchased fuels or process residues such as pulping liquor, waste gas, or biomass. (EIA Energy Explained)
• 69 Manufacturers sell a portion of their self-generated electricity back to the grid. In 2022, manufacturing sales and transfers of self-generated electricity offsite totaled 107 trillion Btu, up 15% from 2018. (EIA MECS 2022)

Future Outlook for Manufacturing Energy

Manufacturing energy consumption is projected to keep rising as reshoring adds domestic production capacity, data centers and AI infrastructure drive electricity demand upward, and industrial electrification programs push some processes from gas to grid power. The balance between clean energy investment and structural dependence on natural gas will define the sector's energy cost trajectory through 2030.

• 70 Manufacturing energy consumption is in its third consecutive year-over-year increase since 2010, and EIA projections in the Annual Energy Outlook see continued growth as US manufacturing capacity expands. (EIA Annual Energy Outlook 2025)
• 71 Manufacturer reshoring of EV and battery supply chains, semiconductor fabs, and defense-related production is adding significant new energy load in domestic industrial markets. (EIA Annual Energy Outlook 2025)
• 72 The DOE has invested in programs to demonstrate advanced heat pumps, process electrification, green hydrogen, and carbon capture for industrial applications, targeting commercialization in the 2025-2030 window. (DOE IEDO, 2024)
• 73 The 2022 MECS is the 11th iteration of this survey, running since 1985. Results continue to be released through Spring 2026, and additional detailed subsector data will provide more granular benchmarks for energy management. (EIA MECS 2022)
• 74 Biomass and waste-based energy use in manufacturing grew 7.53% between 2018 and 2022, with agricultural waste doubling, indicating expanding circular economy practices in food, paper, and wood products. (EIA MECS 2022)
• 75 Hydrogen use in manufacturing, now first tracked at 170 trillion Btu annually, is expected to grow substantially as clean hydrogen production costs decline and fuel cell and direct reduction steelmaking processes scale up. (DOE Industrial Decarbonization Roadmap)

Sources

Every statistic on this page links to its original source. The full source list is below for reference and citation.

1. EIA Manufacturing Energy Consumption Survey (MECS) 2022. US Energy Information Administration. Preliminary estimates released March 2025; additional results through Spring 2026. https://www.eia.gov/consumption/manufacturing/
2. EIA MECS 2022 Preliminary Estimates Report. US Energy Information Administration, March 20, 2025. https://www.eia.gov/consumption/manufacturing/reports/2022/prelim_estimates/
3. EIA MECS 2022 Release 1-2 Highlights. September 24, 2025. Energy consumption by economic characteristics and expenditures. EIA MECS 2022 R1-2 PDF
4. EIA: Use of Energy in Industry. Energy Explained series, last updated July 2023. https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/use-of-energy/industry.php
5. EIA: US Manufacturing Energy Consumption Has Continued to Increase. Today in Energy, March 25, 2025. https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=64804
6. EIA: US Primary Energy Production, Consumption, and Exports in 2024. https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=65524
7. EIA: US Energy Spending Increased by More Than 20% in 2022. https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=62945
8. EIA: In Most US Regions, 2024 Wholesale Electricity Prices Similar to 2023. https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=61244
9. EIA: US Wholesale Electricity Prices Were Lower and Less Volatile in 2024. https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=64284
10. EIA: CO2 Emissions Data. Environment section. https://www.eia.gov/environment/emissions/carbon/
11. EIA Annual Energy Outlook 2025. https://www.eia.gov/outlooks/aeo/
12. EIA Electric Power Annual: Average Price to Ultimate Customers by State. https://www.eia.gov/electricity/annual/html/epa_02_10.html
13. Federal Reserve FRED: Manufacturing Sector Energy Costs (MPU9900641). Bureau of Labor Statistics data via St. Louis Fed. https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/MPU9900641
14. EPA: Most Energy-Efficient Manufacturing Plants of 2023. News release, March 14, 2024. https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-announces-most-energy-efficient-manufacturing-plants-2023
15. DOE: Industrial Decarbonization Roadmap. Department of Energy, Office of Industrial Technologies. https://www.energy.gov/industrial-technologies/doe-industrial-decarbonization-roadmap
16. DOE: 2023 Accomplishments for Industrial Efficiency and Decarbonization. Office of Industrial Efficiency and Decarbonization. https://www.energy.gov/eere/iedo/articles/2023-accomplishments-industrial-efficiency-and-decarbonization
17. DOE: $60 Million Investment to Increase Energy Efficiency in Manufacturing. Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains. DOE CMEI
18. Congressional Budget Office: Emissions of Greenhouse Gases in the Manufacturing Sector. February 2024. https://www.cbo.gov/system/files/2024-02/59695-manufacturing-emissions.pdf
19. Business Council for Sustainable Energy: IRA Investment Tracking. Citing MIT/Rhodium Clean Investment Monitor. May 2025. https://bcse.org/20-best-in-class-inflation-reduction-act-trackers-and-resources/
20. CNBC: How the Inflation Reduction Act Sparked a Manufacturing and Clean Energy Boom. August 2024. https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/20/inflation-reduction-act-sparked-a-manufacturing-clean-energy-boom.html
21. World Economic Forum: How Hard-to-Abate Sectors Can Decarbonize Faster. December 2024. Net Zero Industry Tracker 2024. https://www.weforum.org/stories/2024/12/net-zero-hard-to-abate-sectors-decarbonization/
22. Nature Reviews Clean Technology: Technologies and Gaps in Deep Decarbonization of Hard-to-Abate Industrial Sectors. 2025. https://www.nature.com/articles/s44359-025-00082-w
23. Ganapati, Shapiro, and Walker: Energy Cost Pass-Through in US Manufacturing. Journal of Political Economy. https://joseph-s-shapiro.com/research/Ganapati_Shapiro_Walker.pdf
24. Statista: US Industrial Electricity Prices Monthly 2024. Based on EIA Electric Power Monthly data. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1395805/monthly-electricity-price-industrial-sector-united-states/