Section 205(A)(2) of the Department of Energy Organization Act of 1977 (Public Law 95-91) requires the Administrator of the Energy Information Administration (EIA) to carry out a central, comprehensive, and unified energy data information program. Under this program, EIA collects, evaluates, assembles, analyzes, and disseminates data and information relevant to energy resources, reserves, production, demand, technology, and related economic and statistical information.

The legislation that created EIA vested the organization with an element of statutory independence. EIA does not take positions on policy questions. The agency's responsibility is to provide timely, high-quality information and to perform objective, credible analyses in support of deliberations by both public and private decisionmakers. Accordingly, this report does not purport to represent the policy positions of the U.S. Department of Energy or the Administration.

The Electric Power Annual 2000 Volume I is intended for a wide audience, including Congress, Federal and State agencies, the electric power industry, and the general public. The primary purpose of this report is to provide a statistical review of the domestic electric power industry's data collected by the EIA for the most recent year. Statistical information contained in this report include industry capability, generation, fossil-fuel consumption, and stocks. Data on utility fossil-fuel receipts and costs as well as data on retail sales of electricity and average revenue per kilowatthour are also presented.

Some discussions, tables, and figures may address utilities only, some nonutilities only, and others the electric power industry as a whole. The combination of utility and nonutility are referred to as industry. Industry data are presented wherever possible to provide the most complete picture.

The Electric Power Annual Volume II, to be released later in the year, will provide additional annual summary statistics for the electric power industry, including information for both electric utilities and nonutilities. Volume II includes data on electric utility retail sales of electricity, associated revenue, and average revenue per kilowatthour of electricity sold; financial statistics; environmental statistics; power transactions; and demand-side management. Also included in the report are data on installed capacity, gross generation, emissions, and supply and disposition of energy for nonutilities.