Alaska energy statistics.

• Author: Klouda, Nolan
• Position: ALASKA TRENDS

As this month's issue explores a variety of topics related to energy, it's worth exploring some statistics on Alaska's energy use from the US Energy Information Agency.

As of March 2016 Alaska generated the largest share of its electricity from natural gas, at about 43 percent of total generation, followed by hydroelectric (30 percent), petroleum-fired (12 percent), coal-fired (11 percent), and other renewables at 4 percent (predominantly wind). Although wind capacity has steadily increased over the years as more turbines have been installed, it is still a relatively small piece of the pie as the state's power generation profile has changed relatively little.

How does this compare to the Lower 48? Overall, Alaska generates a greater share of its power from natural gas than the US total of 34 percent, but a smaller share from coal, which generates about a quarter of the nation's power. The state outperforms the national total in hydroelectric, which produces about 9 percent of the power for the United States as a whole. Alaska has no nuclear power, but nationally this source contributes over 20 percent of the power generation. The "other renewables" category, which is mostly composed of wind generation, accounted for 21 percent of the US total.

When looking only at renewables, Alaska produces about 34 percent of its total generation from renewable sources (mostly hydroelectric), which is significantly more than the US total of about 19 percent.

And how about electric prices? As of April, residential customers in Alaska paid about $0.21 per kilowatt-hour versus a national average of $0.12. Only the states of Connecticut and Hawaii were more expensive, and while the national average price actually fell slightly from April 2015 to April 2016 (likely due to falling commodity prices), it increased in Alaska by about a cent.

Alaska Trends, an outline of significant statewide statistics, is provided by the University of Alaska Center for Economic Development.

ALASKA TRENDS Indicator Units Period GENERAL Per Capita Personal Income-Alaska US $ 1stQ16 Per Capita Personal Income-United US $ 1stQ16 States Consumer Prices--Anchorage 1982-1984 = 100 2ndH15 Consumer Prices-United States 1982-1984 = 100 2ndH15 Bankruptcies Alaska Total Number Filed May Anchorage Total Number Filed Fairbanks Total Number Filed Labor Force in Alaska Thousands May Unemployment Rate Alaska Percent May United States Percent May Employment Alaska Thousands May Anchorage/Mat-Su Region Thousands May Anchorage, Municipality Thousands May Interior Region Thousands May Fairbanks North...