The United States is a constitutional federal republic and representative democracy. There are three levels of government: federal, state and local. The federal government has three branches: legislative, executive and judicial. The elected president serves a four-year term and may serve no more than two terms. Members of the House of Representatives are elected for a two-year term, while senators are elected to a six-year term.
Brief on the Economy
The U.S. has a population of more than 335 million people, making it the third most populous country in the world. The official language is English. The official currency is the U.S. Dollar.
The country has a large and highly diversified economy based on technology, a large services sector, manufacturing, abundant natural resources, well developed infrastructure, and high productivity. It is the largest importer and second largest exporter in the world. The U.S. is the second largest manufacturer and largest internal market for goods as it dominates the services trade. The U.S. Federal Reserve projects 2021 real GDP growth rate of around 4 percent.
Brief on the Energy Sector
U.S. consumers generally have access to reliable, affordable and increasingly environmentally sustainable energy. The U.S. is the world’s largest crude-oil producer, producing 11.308 million barrels per day in 2020. Its reliance on foreign oil imports has decreased dramatically with increased domestic production, making the U.S. a net exporter in recent years. The U.S. exports oil, petroleum products, and natural gas (as LNG and via pipeline). Extensive infrastructure, largely developed, owned and operated by the private sector, is essential to the strong performance of U.S. energy sectors.
The United States is the world’s largest producer and consumer of natural gas, and production in recent years has been driven by the unconventional gas revolution and innovative development and deployment of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing technology that made it possible.
President Joe Biden set ambitious goals for getting America on an irreversible path to 100 percent clean energy by 2035, and a net-zero carbon economy by 2050. As of April 2021, renewable energy accounts for 12% of U.S. primary energy consumption (of that, 11% – solar, 2% – geothermal, 22% – hydroelectric, 26% – wind, 39% – biomass), see the U.S. Energy Information Administration website for further detail.
The United States is as observer in the East Mediterranean Gas Forum.