DOE has closed on its $465 million loan to Tesla Motors, Inc.,
which the automaker will use to build two factories. One will
be in southern California, producing the Model S electric
sedan. The other is in Palo Alto, California, where workers will
assemble electric powertrains and vehicle components.
Fossil fuels provide more than 85% of all the energy consumed in the US, nearly two-thirds of our electricity, and virtually all of our transportation fuels. (Source: DOE)
Public policies such as appliance and vehicle efficiency standards and building codes are responsible for at least 20% of the improvement in the US's energy intensity--energy use per unit of GDP. (Source: Institute for 21st Century Energy)
Estimated energy demand is charted to grow by almost 50% in the next 20 years.
The United States makes up 5% of the world's population and accounts for 25% of total energy use.
Appliances account for roughly 65% of electricity consumption in the average American household (2001), with refrigerators and lighting making up the largest categories. (Source: EIA)
