Key Stats

• U.S. net energy exports increased 36.2% from January through April 2026 as exports rose 13.2% and imports increased just 1.8%.
• Natural gas net exports grew 30.4% and petroleum-product net exports rose 23.1%, while crude oil net imports declined 4.5%.
• Total U.S. energy production increased 3.4%, while domestic energy consumption slipped 0.6%.
• By June, regular gasoline averaged $4.05 per gallon, up 28.6% from June 2025, while diesel reached $5.02, up 39.6%.
• Residential electricity averaged 18.04 cents per kilowatt-hour during the first four months, an increase of 8.3%.
• Combined utility-scale and estimated small-scale solar generation increased 18.9%, including a 21.3% rise at utility-scale facilities.
• Hydroelectric generation rose 15.7% and wind increased 3.4%, while coal-fired generation fell 11.6%.
• Energy-related carbon dioxide emissions declined 2.0% during the first four months of 2026.
• The cooling-degree-day index rose 33% nationwide, including increases of 136% in the Mountain division and 113% in the Pacific division.
• Reported EV charging ports increased 8.1% to 277,102 by the end of April, while DC fast-charging ports rose 23.0%.

Note: Most cumulative comparisons cover January through April 2026 against the same period of 2025. Motor-fuel prices extend through June, while charging figures are end-of-period totals. Recent data may be preliminary, estimated or revised.

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U.S. net energy exports increased 36.2% during the first four months of 2026 compared with the same period a year earlier, according to the July 2026 Monthly Energy Review from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Total exports rose 13.2%, while imports increased only 1.8%. The April energy surplus alone was approximately 69% larger than in April 2025.

Natural gas and petroleum products drove the increase

Natural gas net exports grew 30.4% from January through April, while net exports of petroleum products increased 23.1%.

The petroleum-products category includes refined fuels, unfinished oils and blending components. It is reported separately from crude oil.

The United States continued to import more crude oil than it exported, although net crude imports declined 4.5% from the same four-month period in 2025.

That means the overall energy surplus did not reflect self-sufficiency in every fuel. Large natural gas and petroleum-product surpluses more than offset the continuing crude oil deficit.

Domestic production also increased 3.4%, while total energy consumption edged down 0.6%.

The combination of faster exports, limited import growth, higher production and slightly lower consumption widened the national energy balance.

Gasoline, diesel and electricity prices moved higher

The report also records substantial increases in prices paid by drivers.

By June, the national average price of regular gasoline had reached $4.05 per gallon, up 28.6% from $3.15 in June 2025.

On-highway diesel averaged $5.02 per gallon, an increase of 39.6% from $3.60 a year earlier.

The motor-fuel figures include taxes and are reported in nominal dollars, meaning they are not adjusted for inflation.

Electricity prices also rose during the first four months of the year.

Residential customers paid an average of 18.04 cents per kilowatt-hour, up 8.3% from 16.65 cents during the same period of 2025.

Across all customer groups, the average electricity price increased 7.5%. Commercial prices rose 6.9%, while industrial prices increased 7.4%.

Solar and hydro grew while coal declined

Combined utility-scale and estimated small-scale solar generation increased 18.9% during the first four months of 2026.

Utility-scale solar generation rose 21.3%, while estimated generation from small-scale installations increased 11.9%.

Conventional hydroelectric generation climbed 15.7%, and wind generation grew 3.4%.

Coal-fired generation moved in the opposite direction, declining 11.6%. Natural gas generation increased 2.8%, and total utility-scale electricity generation rose 1.9%.

These numbers measure electricity produced, not the amount of generating capacity installed.

The increase in U.S. solar output follows a broader rise in global solar generation during 2025, although the two sources cover different periods and use different datasets.

The report separately estimates that energy-related carbon dioxide emissions declined 2.0% during the first four months of 2026.

That total covers emissions from energy consumption. The report does not attribute the decline to any single change in generation, consumption or weather.

Regional weather indicators shifted sharply

National averages concealed much larger changes in several regions.

Cooling degree days increased 33% nationwide during the first four months of 2026. Heating degree days declined by approximately 9%.

Degree days are weather-based indicators of potential heating and cooling requirements. They are not direct measurements of electricity or fuel consumption.

The Mountain division recorded a 136% increase in cooling degree days and a 21.6% decline in heating degree days.

That region includes Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming.

The Pacific division recorded a 113% increase in cooling degree days, while its heating-degree-day total fell 22.1%.

The Pacific division includes Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon and Washington.

In the West South Central division, which covers Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas, cooling degree days rose 34.9% and heating degree days declined 27.3%.

The regional figures illustrate why a relatively small national change in energy consumption can occur alongside much larger weather shifts in particular parts of the country.

EV fast-charging infrastructure expanded

The number of reported public and private EV charging ports reached 277,102 at the end of April, an increase of 8.1% from a year earlier.

DC fast-charging ports increased 23.0% to 72,378, growing nearly three times as quickly as the overall port total.

The number of reported charging locations increased 4.1% to 82,910.

EIA’s figures exclude charging equipment at single-family residential properties. They include both publicly accessible and private infrastructure reported in the underlying database.

✦ Why it matters ✦

The widening trade surplus shows that the United States supplied substantially more energy to international markets in early 2026 than it did a year earlier.

For households, however, the same period included higher gasoline, diesel and electricity prices. A country can export more energy overall while domestic consumers also pay more for particular fuels and services.

The generation data show another part of the picture. Solar and hydroelectric output grew rapidly, coal generation declined and natural gas remained the largest source of electricity.

The regional weather figures also show why national totals can miss important local pressures. The Mountain and Pacific divisions experienced unusually large increases in the cooling-degree-day index even as nationwide energy consumption edged lower.

Faster growth in DC charging ports points to continued investment in transportation infrastructure. The charging data measure the availability of equipment, not how frequently drivers use it.

Taken together, the figures describe several changes happening at once: a larger energy trade surplus, rising consumer prices, expanding renewable generation, lower coal output and sharply different regional weather patterns.