New Energy On A “Juggernaut” Taking Over Markets

Overshadowed by pandemic, war and economic concerns, the electric power transition has become a juggernaut in the U.S.

Dennis Wamsted and Seth Feaster, December 6, 2022 (Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis)

“…A massive transition has occurred in the U.S. electric power system in the past three years, largely overshadowed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the economic turmoil that both have left in their wake…[and] growth is poised to accelerate as incentives in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) begin to take effect…The numbers are stunning. In 2019, there were just four days during the entire year when solar and wind generation accounted for more than 15% of total U.S. demand…

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…[Through the end of November 2022, the wind, solar and hydro market share has been] more than 25% of daily demand on 69 days (or 20.7% of the time); for all of 2019, that happened just three times…The numbers show that wind and solar have more than matched the growth in U.S. generation in the past three years, and are pushing fossil fuels—especially coal—off the grid…[Generation from coal-fired power plants has fallen by] 11%, in the past three years…[Coal retirements] are likely to rise. Just in the past several weeks, Xcel Energy and DTE Energy have both announced new coal plant retirements…

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…[New Energy development queues already overflowing with planned solar, wind and storage projects are expected to grow] with the IRA’s extended wind and solar tax credits and new support for standalone storage…[Small-scale rooftop solar generation has also] been growing quickly recently and will benefit from a host of new tax benefits in the IRA...Rooftop solar is still a small portion of the electric power sector, but its impact is beginning to show up across the U.S…” click here for more

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