Jamaica relies almost entirely on imports of fuel oil to power its generation plants.
International Finance Corporation, 2005
Each year 183 kilowatt hours of electricity are generated from oil for each person living in the world. The kilowatt hour is a measure of electricity – it measures power over a period of time. A kilowatt hour is 1000 watts multiplied by 3600 seconds. A watt is a joule per second. A joule is the minimum energy needed to lift a kilogram 10 centimetres from the earth’s surface.
Japan, the United States and Saudi Arabia generate the most electricity from oil. Of the ten territories that do not generate any electricity from oil, six are in the Middle East. Only one of these ten, South Africa, is located in Africa. Despite this the Southeastern and Central African regions generate the lowest amounts of electricity from oil.
