Renewable Energy Has Exceeded Coal in Electrical Generating Capacity!

This news was first announced in a SUN DAY Campaign press release.

Credit: Erich Westendarp from Pixabay

Information from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) “Energy Infrastructure Update” in April shows that, between additional wind, solar, and hydropower units, renewable energy sources now make up 21.56 percent of the United States’ energy generating capacity, just edging past coal. Coal, which now makes up 21.55 percent of U.S. generating capacity, has decreased 1.49 percentage points since 2018. For the first time, renewable sources make up a larger portion of U.S. energy capacity than coal.

FERC’s data show the generating capacity of renewables has been growing about 1 percentage point annually. Broken down, the generating capacity of solar has “more than doubled during the past three years from 1.42 percent to 3.23 percent,” according to Ken Bossong of the SUN DAY Campaign, a non-profit research and educational organization. Additionally, the generating capacity of wind has grown from 6.43 percent to 8.25 percent, and FERC predicts it will exceed hydropower in the near future.

FERC is also predicting that combined coal, nuclear, oil, and gas generating capacity will decrease while the generating capacity of renewables will continue to grow. According to FERC’s forecasts, in three years, renewable energy sources will make up 24.15 percent—almost a quarter—of the United States’ generation capacity. Under this prediction, wind would make up 10.01 percent, solar 4.32 percent, hydropower 8.16 percent, biomass 1.33 percent, and geothermal 0.33 percent of total U.S. energy generation capacity.

It is important to note, however, that generation capacity and actual generation are two different things. Fossil fuels and nuclear plants tend to generate a higher share of their rated capacity than renewable energy facilities. For instance, renewables actually generated 17.6 percent of U.S. electricity in 2018, compared to 27.2 percent from coal (even though their generating capacities were similar during the year).

 

Author: Heather Luedke