Energy Information Administration (EIA)

Overview
As the statistical and analytical agency within the US Department of Energy, on which many domestic policymakers rely, EIA is understandably US-centric. The Wednesday morning release of their weekly oil report can move world oil markets. A legal safeguard ensures that EIA materials are produced independently of policy considerations, but that did not stop the Wall Street Journal from making accusations in 2010 that EIA's data integrity was threatened and it methodologies flawed.

The emphasis is on demand, supply and prices. As well as raw data, the EIA pulls together the figures into easily understandable trends. Much analysis focuses on energy issues relevant to the White House, such as emerging commodity producers and the unconventional fuels boom in the US.

The annual flagship publication is the Annual Energy Review (and the International Energy Review).But there are also extensive publications aimed at different audiences which you can get delivered by email. Stand-outs are the Country Analysis Briefs, which give a useful bird's eye view on the sector country-by-country, and Today in Energy, bite-sized articles and charts.

Access
The monthly energy reviews can be downloaded in PDF format, MS Excel and CSV. To access and search the raw data, go to (Geography > Country > International Energy Statistics).

Highlights
The educational thrust of the agency means that there are plenty of materials to fill in knowledge gaps on issues such as the environmental impact of the oil and gas industry to the pros and cons of biofuels, and including a welcome energy unit conversion calculator.



How might I use it?
Let's say what you need is some background information on the reserve or production levels of a certain producing country, easily displayed and easy to contrast with surrounding nations. Going to Geography > Maps from the homepage will bring up a colour-coded world map of world production, consumption and reserve levels and browse basic statistics.



For more in-depth information, go to the individual country pages for an at-a-glance overview of the sector in a particular country, where you can download the full Country Analysis Briefs (available for 44 countries at time of writing) in PDF format.



Alternatively to see this data in its raw format, see 'International Energy Statistics' tab at the foot of the page and search for data yourself.