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Electrical energy is power (most commonly stated in watts) times a unit of time (most commonly one hour: watt-hours). 1,000 watt-hours equals one kilowatt-hour (kWh), which is the amount of power in watts transferred (or used) over 1 hour divided by 1,000. A MWh is equal to 1,000 kWh or 1,000,000 watt-hours. All other metric prefixes can also be applied, e.g., giga (G, billion), tera (T, trillion), and peta (P, quadrillion). | Electrical energy is power (most commonly stated in watts) times a unit of time (most commonly one hour: watt-hours). 1,000 watt-hours equals one kilowatt-hour (kWh), which is the amount of power in watts transferred (or used) over 1 hour divided by 1,000. A MWh is equal to 1,000 kWh or 1,000,000 watt-hours. All other metric prefixes can also be applied, e.g., giga (G, billion), tera (T, trillion), and peta (P, quadrillion). | ||
For comparison or inclusion with other forms of energy | For comparison or inclusion with other forms of energy, electrical energy can also be measured in joules (J), British thermal units (BTUs), and million [[tonne]] oil equivalent (mtoe). One petajoule (PJ) = 278 GWh. One quadrillion BTU (quad) = 293 TWh. One mtoe = 11,630 GWh. | ||
The average household electricity use in the USA was about 11,000 kWh (11 MWh) per year in 2015.<ref>https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.php?id=97&t=3</ref> | The average ''household'' electricity use in the USA was about 11,000 kWh (11 MWh) per year in 2015.<ref>https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.php?id=97&t=3</ref> However, residential use represented only 38% of total electricity use in the USA in 2016.<ref>https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/index.cfm?page=electricity_use</ref> | ||
The total amount of electricity (including commercial and industrial use as well as residential) used in the USA in 2016 was 3.85 PWh (3.85 trillion kWh).<ref>https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/index.cfm?page=electricity_use</ref> With a population of around 323 million,<ref>http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/PEP/2016/PEPMONTHN</ref> the per-capita (per-person) electricity consumption in the USA was about 12,000 kWh (12 MWh) in 2016. | The total amount of electricity (including commercial and industrial use as well as residential) used in the USA in 2016 was 3.85 PWh (3.85 trillion kWh).<ref>https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/index.cfm?page=electricity_use</ref> With a population of around 323 million,<ref>http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/PEP/2016/PEPMONTHN</ref> the ''per-capita'' (per-person) electricity consumption in the USA was therefore about 12,000 kWh (12 MWh) in 2016. | ||
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