Energy accounts
Physical energy flow accounts, also known as energy accounts, record the flows of energy:
- from the environment to the economy, called natural energy inputs (for example, extractions of oil resources)
- within the economy, called energy products (for example, transport diesel)
- from the economy back to the environment, called energy residuals (for example, losses in form of heat)
Energy accounts measure both the supply and use of energy, identifying the energy products and which part of the economy produces or uses them.
Energy accounts are one of the environmental-economic accounts. They provide information on energy flows arranged in a way that is fully compatible with concepts, principles, and classifications of national accounts. They therefore enable integrated analyses of environmental, energy and economic issues, such as as the parts of the economy which have the highest energy consumption. Energy use is also closely related to greenhouse gas emissions and energy or environmental taxation.
Energy accounts complement the traditional energy statistics, balances and derived indicators, because they are aligned to GDP and other macroeconomic measures and provide the same breakdowns by energy producer and user.
For further details on the data collections, including questionnaires and manuals, please see the relevant section on the methodology page.