English

# IELTS 9 Test 4 Task 1

The line graph illustrates the past and forecast trends in energy consumption (in quadrillion units) in the United States between 1980 and 2030 for six different fuel sources.

From the graph, it can be seen that the annual consumption of all fuel sources is expected to rise over the 50-year period apart from hydropower, which is expected to remain relatively constant.  The three most consumed sources were fossil fuels petroleum (petrol and oil), coal and natural gas, and these are expected to see the highest rises in consumption.

At the commencement of the period, petroleum was the dominant fuel source at 35 quadrillion units (q.u.). Natural gas was second at 20 q.u. followed closely by coal (15 q.u.). The remaining three sources nuclear, solar/wind, and hydropower were consumed at 3 q.u. each, making them collectively account for a little over 10% of the total energy consumed in that year.

By the end of the period, the forecasts for petroleum and coal consumption are for significant increases to approximately 50 q.u. and 30 q.u. respectively. Natural gas was outstripped by coal in 2013, but is still anticipated to remain constant at 25 q.u until the end of the period to remain in third place.

Meanwhile, two of the non-fossil fuels nuclear and solar/wind saw slight increases until around 2010, after which they are expected to remain constant until 2025 and rise slightly until 2030. Hydropower witnessed some fluctuation until 2012, but is expect to remain unchanged for the rest of the period.

(251 words)

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