Energy intensities in OECD countries, 1970--1989: A sectoral analysis.

We discuss the evolution of energy intensities in key sectors or subsectors between the early 1970s and the late 1980s in nine OECD countries. The sectors covered are manufacturing, automobile and air travel, freight trucking, residential space heating, and the service sector. Intensity changes varied among the sectors and countries, but common trends are visible in many cases. In most cases, the intensity decline slowed or ceased in the mid-1980s. We discuss the causes for the changes observed in each area, showing how energy-price changes were but one of many factors that played a role. Weighting the changes in intensities by 1973 energy use patterns, we find that the aggregate energy intensity index fell by 14--19% between 1973 and 1988 in the US, Japan, and West Germany.