The Seismic Shifts Transforming Global Energy in Five Charts

(Bloomberg) -- BP Plc has published is Statistical Review of World Energy for 66 years. This year’s data laid open the accelerating shifts in global patterns of energy production and consumption as economies move from fossil fuels to wind, solar and other renewable technologies. These charts show five of the most striking trends:

1. Coal’s Quickening Demise

Coal production fell by the most on record last year as power producers switched to natural gas as well as wind and solar power.

2. Even China’s Turning Away

This map shows that most of the world’s economies are turning away from coal, the most environmentally harmful fossil fuel. This includes the two largest, the U.S. and China, where three decades of rapid industrialization had seen consumption grow exponentially.

3. China’s Also Using Less Diesel

Here’s another sudden shift that shows how China’s maturing economy is changing the energy industry. Consumption of diesel, the fuel for millions of trucks, trains, fork-lifts and diggers, declined last year for the first time since the early 1990s.

4. Global Carbon Emissions Are Stable

Falling emissions in Europe and the U.S. were just about sufficient to offset rising pollution from Asian economies.

5. Solar and Wind March On

Renewables still account for a small proportion of global energy consumption but their growth accelerates every year.

To contact the reporters on this story: James Herron in London at jherron9@bloomberg.net, Will Kennedy in London at wkennedy3@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Will Kennedy at wkennedy3@bloomberg.net, Rachel Graham, James Herron