The energy industry is a generic term for all of the industries involved the production and sale of energy, including fuel extraction, manufacturing fuel and refining, and fuel distribution. Modern society consumes large amounts fuel, and the energy industry is a crucial part of the infrastructure and maintenance of society in almost all countries. Fuel is a material with one type of energy which can be transformed into another usable energy. ... View of Shell Oil Refinery in Martinez, California. ... One of the most influential doctrines in history is that all humans are divided into groups called nations. ...

In particular, the energy industry comprises:

• the petroleum industry, include oil companies, petroleum refiners, fuel transport and end-user sales at gas stations
• the gas industry, including natural gas extraction, and coal gas manufacture, as well as distribution and sales
• the electrical power industry, including electricity generation, electric power distribution and sales
• the coal industry
• the nuclear power industry
• alternative energy and sustainable energy companies, including those involved in hydroelectric power, wind power, and solar power generation, and the manufacture, distribution and sale of alternative fuels.
• traditional energy industry based on the collection and distribution of firewood, the use of which, for cookng and heating, is particulary common in poorer countries

The oil industry is a type of industry which brings petroleum to a financial market. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... Modern gas station A filling station, gas station or petrol station is a facility that sells fuel for road motor vehicles – usually petrol (US: gas/gasoline), diesel fuel and LPG. The term gas station is mostly particular to the United States of America and Canada, where petrol is known as... Many stoves use natural gas. ... Syngas (from synthesis gas) is the name given to gasses of varying composition that are generated in coal gasification and some types of waste-to-energy facilities. ... Transmission lines in Lund, Sweden Electric power, often known as power or electricity, involves the production and delivery of electrical energy in sufficient quantities to operate domestic appliances, office equipment, industrial machinery and provide sufficient energy for both domestic and commercial lighting, heating, cooking and industrial processes. ... Itaipu Dam is a hydroelectric generating station Electricity generation is the first process in the delivery of electricity to consumers. ... This article is in need of attention. ... Coal (previously referred to as pitcoal or seacoal) is a fossil fuel extracted from the ground by underground mining or open-pit mining (surface mining). ... A nuclear power station. ... Future energy development face great challenges due to an increasing world population, demands for higher standards of living, demands for less pollution and a much discussed end to fossil fuels. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Hydroelectric dam diagram The waters of Llyn Stwlan, the upper reservoir of the Ffestiniog Pumped-Storage Scheme in north Wales, can just be glimpsed on the right. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Solar power describes a number of methods of harnessing energy from the light of the sun. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Wood burning is the largest current use of biomass derived energy. ...

Environmental impact

Because of government encouragement in the form of subsidies and tax incentives, energy conservation efforts are also being increasingly viewed as a major function of the energy industry, as saving an amount of energy has almost identical economic benefits to generating that same amount of energy. The energy industry generates a large amount of pollution, including the generation of toxic gases and greenhouse gases from fuel combustion, nuclear waste from nuclear power generation, and oil spillages in the petroleum industry. Because of government regulation, pollution regulation efforts form an increasing part of the energy industry, and the trading of carbon credits and pollution credits on the free market may also result in energy saving and pollution control measures becoming even more important to energy companies. This article or section contains information that has not been verified and thus might not be reliable. ... A tax (also known as a duty) is a financial charge or other levy imposed on an individual or a legal entity by a state or a functional equivalent of a state (e. ... In economics, an incentive in anything that provides a motive for a particular course of action — that counts as a reason for preferring one choice to the alternatives. ... For the physical concepts, see conservation of energy and energy efficiency. ... Water pollution Pollution is the release of chemical, physical, biological or radioactive contaminants to the environment. ... Top: Increasing atmospheric CO2 levels as measured in the atmosphere and ice cores. ... Political Punk band from Victorville, Ca WWW.MYSPACE.COM/NUCLEARWASTEX ... Volunteers cleaning up the aftermath of the Prestige oil spill An oil spill is the intentional or unintentional release of oil (generally, petroleum) into the natural environment as a result of human activity. ... Water pollution Pollution is the release of chemical, physical, biological or radioactive contaminants to the environment. ... Carbon credits as defined by Kyoto Protocol are one metric ton of carbon emitted by the burning of fossil fuels. ... pollution c, sometimes called pollution permits or pollution certificates are pollution rights as used in emissions trading. ...

See also

• Hydrogen economy