New Energy Steps Up In U.S. Power Mix

Solar & Wind Take The Lead In FERC's First "Infrastructure" Report Of 2019; Renewable Generating Capacity Closing The Gap With Coal As Wind Approaches That Of Hydropower…

Ken Bossong, March 13, 2019 (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission/Sun Day)

“…[N]ew solar and wind generating capacity has taken the lead over natural gas and all other energy sources for the first month of 2019…18 "units" of new solar capacity (631 MW) and four units of new wind capacity (519 MW) each beat new natural gas capacity (one unit - 465 MW) in January. No new capacity additions were reported for any other energy sources…[R]enewables (i.e., biomass, geothermal, hydropower, solar, wind) now account for 21.23% of total available installed U.S. generating capacity…[up from 16.24% five years ago, a growth of] a percentage point each year…

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Total wind generating capacity (97.18 GW) is rapidly closing in on that of hydropower (100.33 GW) and seems certain to overtake it sometime this year…[A]ll renewables combined (254.57 GW) is about to surpass that of coal (264.49 GW) - again, very possibly in 2019…[U]tility-scale solar has now surpassed 3.0% of the nation's generating capacity…[Generation and retirements by February 2021] include net capacity additions by renewable sources of 192,724 MW compared to only 42,579 MW of net new additions by coal, oil, and natural gas combined…” click here for more

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