08/20/2008 06:12 AM

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Weekly Clean Energy Roundup: August 20, 2008 Page 4

Volkswagen Launches Clean Diesel Jetta Sedans and Wagons

Volkswagen of America, Inc. announced on Monday that the clean diesel Jetta TDI sedan and SportWagen are now available for delivery in the United States. The new clean diesel vehicles run only on ultra-low sulfur diesel and meet emission standards in all 50 states. The Jetta TDI sedan achieves 29 miles per gallon (mpg) in the city and 40 mpg on the highway, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), but Volkswagen claims the vehicle achieves higher mileage in real-world driving conditions. According to EPA estimates, the Jetta wagon achieves a fuel economy of 21 mpg in the city and 29 mpg on the highway.

Both vehicles also earn a $1,300 federal tax credit, as they qualify as Advanced Lean Burn Technology Motor Vehicles under a tax law that was established by the Energy Policy Act of 2005. Under that tax law, only the first 60,000 qualified vehicles sold by each manufacturer will earn the full credit, after which the credit will be first reduced and then eliminated. Note, however, that the tax credit may be effectively reduced for buyers that are subject to the alternative minimum tax. See the Volkswagen press release and Web pages for the Jetta TDI sedan and SportWagen.

U.S. Residents Driving Less and Consuming Less Oil

Prospects for a weak economy and continued high prices for crude oil and petroleum products are expected to cut U.S. petroleum demand by nearly 500,000 barrels per day on average for 2008, according to DOE's Energy Information Administration (EIA).

The EIA's "Short-Term Energy Outlook," released last week, notes that the decline in U.S. oil consumption for the first half of the year was the largest in the past 26 years. Petroleum consumption dipped strongly for the first 5 months of 2008, falling 900,000 barrels per day below the consumption levels during the same period in 2007, but the consumption drop narrowed to 400,000 barrels per day in June and July. The EIA expects U.S. oil consumption to continue falling in 2009, dropping 120,000 barrels per day below the 2008 average.

The EIA's "This Week in Petroleum" notes that the average monthly U.S. petroleum consumption has been lower than the year before for 12 consecutive months, a trend not seen since August 1991, when a weak economy dampened petroleum demand. See the August edition of the EIA's "Short-Term Energy Outlook" and the August 13 edition of "This Week in Petroleum."

The latest statistics from the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) shows one reason why petroleum demand is dropping: for the past 8 months, U.S. residents have been driving less than they did the year before. In fact, the FHWA's June report on traffic volume trends found that the vehicle miles traveled in the United States dropped by 42.1 billion miles for the first half of the year, a 2.8% decrease. Of those 6 months, the largest drop was recorded in June, with a 4.7% decrease.

The statistics show the greatest drop (5.4%) in the South Atlantic region, while the Northeast experienced the smallest drop (3.9%). While U.S. drivers may be taking a number of actions to reduce their driving miles, such as limiting their driving for vacations, the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) also notes that first-quarter use of public transportation use increased by about 3.5%, or about 88 million trips. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the seasonally adjusted Consumer Price Indices for energy use have increased sharply for the past 3 months, including a 4% increase in July. See the press release and report (PDF 154 KB) from the FHWA, as well as the press releases from the APTA and the BLS.

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Kevin Eber is the Editor of EREE Network News, a weekly publication of the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE). 

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