Final 12 months, the US electrical energy sector produced 4,090 million MWh of electrical energy. In 2022, era from renewable sources—wind, photo voltaic, hydro, biomass and geothermal—surpassed coal-fired era within the electrical energy sector for the primary time. Renewable era surpassed nuclear era for the primary time in 2021 and continued to supply extra electrical energy than nuclear era final 12 months.
Knowledge supply: U.S. Power Data Administration, Electrical energy Knowledge Browser
Pure fuel remained the most important supply of US electrical energy era, rising from a 37% share of US era in 2021 to 39% in 2022. The share of coal-fired era decreased from 23% in 2021 to twenty% in 2022 as plenty of coal-fired energy crops retired and the remaining crops had been used much less. The share of nuclear era decreased from 20% in 2021 to 19% in 2022, following the Palisades nuclear energy plant’s retirement in Might 2022. The mixed wind and photo voltaic share of whole era elevated from 12% in 2021 to 14% in 2022. Hydropower era remained unchanged, at 6%, in 2022. The shares for biomass and geothermal sources remained unchanged, at lower than 1%.
Development in wind and photo voltaic producing capability drove the rise in wind and photo voltaic era. Utility-scale photo voltaic capability within the US electrical energy sector elevated from 61 GW in 2021 to 71 GW in 2022, in accordance with information from the US Power Data Administration’s (EIA) Electrical energy Energy Month-to-month. Wind capability grew from 133 GW in 2021 to 141 GW in 2022.
Extra wind-generated energy was produced in Texas than in some other state final 12 months. Texas accounted for 26% of whole US wind era final 12 months, adopted by Iowa (10%) and Oklahoma (9%). One of many largest wind farms in america (almost 1,000 MW capability) got here on-line in Oklahoma in 2022.
In 2022, California ranked first in utility-scale photo voltaic era, producing 26% of the nation’s utility-scale photo voltaic electrical energy. Texas was the second-largest producing state (16%), adopted by North Carolina (8%). A number of of the most important photo voltaic crops inbuilt america within the final three years are situated in Texas, together with the 275 MW Noble photo voltaic plant, which began operations in 2022.
Knowledge supply: U.S. Power Data Administration, Electrical energy Energy Month-to-month
In its March Quick-Time period Power Outlook, EIA forecasts the wind share of the US era combine will enhance from 11% final 12 months to 12% this 12 months. It forecasts that the photo voltaic share will develop to five% in 2023, up from 4% final 12 months. The pure fuel share of era is forecast to stay unchanged from final 12 months (39%); the coal share of era is forecast to say no from 20% final 12 months to 17% in 2023.
The electrical energy sector contains electrical utilities and unbiased energy producers. It doesn’t embody mills within the industrial, business or residential sectors, reminiscent of rooftop photo voltaic panels put in on properties or companies or some combined-heat-and-power techniques.
Principal contributor: Katherine Antonio
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