The most recent US EIA and FERC knowledge mirror a decade of explosive photo voltaic and wind development – right here’s the way it breaks down.
The SUN DAY Marketing campaign reviewed EIA’s newest month-to-month “Electrical Energy Month-to-month” report (with electrical technology knowledge via June 30, 2024) and in contrast it to EIA’s knowledge for June 30, 2019 and for June 30, 2014. It additionally examined FERC’s newest month-to-month “Vitality Infrastructure Replace” report (with put in producing capability knowledge via June 30, 2024) and likewise in contrast it to FERC’s knowledge for June 30, 2019 and for June 30, 2014.
The put in US producing capability mixture of all renewable vitality sources (i.e., biomass, geothermal, hydropower, photo voltaic, and wind) now totals 389 gigawatts (GW). That’s over 50% better than 5 years in the past (258.58 GW) and greater than double the renewable vitality capability that existed a decade in the past (190.26 GW). A lot of the development is due to new photo voltaic and wind capability.
Equally, electrical technology by renewables has proven robust development. Ten years in the past, renewables supplied 14.28% of the nation’s electrical technology. 5 years later, it had grown to twenty.11% and right this moment stands at 26.01%. Once more, a lot of the enhance is because of wind and photo voltaic.
For the primary half of 2024, renewables, together with small-scale photo voltaic, supplied 549,339 gigawatt-hours (GWh) {of electrical} technology. That’s virtually 40% greater than the quantity renewables generated within the first half of 2019 (399,586 GWh) and almost double the output reported for the primary half of 2014 (287,136 GWh).
Over the previous decade, wind has grow to be a pacesetter
Ten years in the past, hydropower boasted about 62% extra capability than wind (99.64 GW vs. 61.45 GW) and generated 40% extra electrical energy (140,659 GWh vs. 99,739 GWh).
5 years later, the 2 have been almost equal in each capability (hydro: 100.73 GW vs. wind: 98.86 GW) and electrical technology (hydro: 153,790 GWh vs. wind: 154,338 GWh).
Now, nevertheless, wind has definitively overtaken hydropower with 152.64 GW of put in capability in comparison with that of hydro (100.88 GW) in addition to 247,435 GWh of precise electrical output throughout the first six months of 2024 in comparison with 126,139 GWh from hydro.
As of mid-2024, wind accounted for 11.72% of complete US electrical technology. 5 years prior, it was 7.77%, and a decade in the past, its share (4.96%) was lower than half of right this moment’s determine.
Wind’s share of complete put in producing capability as of June 30, 2024, was 11.75% – a major enhance from its 8.25% share 5 years earlier and 5.26% a decade in the past.
Photo voltaic is the fastest-growing supply of latest capability and technology
Up to now decade, photo voltaic has ballooned from a fraction of a % of each capability and technology to grow to be the second-largest renewable in each classes.
On the finish of June 2014, utility-scale photo voltaic supplied a mere 9.25 GW (0.75%) of complete put in US producing capability. Technology by utility-scale photo voltaic (8,535 GWh) was solely 0.42% of the US complete and EIA wasn’t even reporting technology by distributed, small-scale (i.e., <1 MW) techniques but.
Nevertheless, 5 years later, photo voltaic capability (39.13 GW) accounted for 3.27% of complete utility-scale capability. Precise technology by utility-scale services within the first half of 2019 had risen greater than fourfold to 36,042 GWh (1.81% of the overall) with small-scale photo voltaic contributing an extra 17,520 GWh (0.88%).
By the center of 2024, put in photo voltaic capability had risen to eight.99% of complete utility-scale capability. Utility-scale techniques generated 102,614 GWh (4.86%) and small-scale techniques added one other 42,449 GWh (2.01%).
This price of photo voltaic and wind development has defied expectations. Three years in the past, FERC had projected that put in utility-scale photo voltaic capability would attain 105.04 GW by mid-year 2024. Photo voltaic’s precise capability right this moment is 11.2% greater than FERC’s earlier forecast. As well as, wind’s put in capability is now 2.4% increased than FERC had anticipated.
Hydropower and geothermal ebbs and flows, biomass drops
Over the previous decade, the put in capability of hydropower has edged up very slowly from 99.64 GW in June 2014 to 100.73 GW 5 years later and 100.88 GW right this moment. As a result of the put in capability of all vitality sources mixed has grown by over 8% throughout the previous 10 years, hydropower’s share of capability has regularly declined from 8.57% in 2014 to eight.41% in 2019, to 7.77% in 2024.
Electrical technology by US hydropower services has ebbed and flowed from 12 months to 12 months. For instance, it was 140,65 GWh within the first half of 2014 (7% of the overall) after which 153,790 GWh in mid-2019 (7.74%) and is now 126,139 GWh (5.97%) for the primary six months of 2024.
Electrical technology by biomass, in addition to its share of put in producing capability, has been on a sluggish decline for the previous 10 years. FERC knowledge point out that utility-scale biomass capability dropped from 16.05 GW (1.37% of the overall) in mid-2014 to 16.02 GW (1.34%) in mid-2019 to 14.54 GW (1.12%) in mid-2024. Correspondingly, precise electrical technology fell from 30,095 GWh (1.50%) throughout the first half of 2014 to 29,520 GWh (1.49%) 5 years later after which to 23,062 GWh (1.09%) this 12 months.
The smallest renewable vitality supply – geothermal – has proven a sample much like that of hydropower. Its put in capability has risen barely from 3.87 GW in 2014 to 4.14 GW right this moment, whereas its share of the US complete has constantly hovered round 0.32-0.33%. Precise technology has ebbed and flowed over the previous decade offering 8,108 GWh (0.40%) within the first six months of 2014, then 8,376 GWh (0.42%) within the first half of 2019, and now 7,640 GWh (0.36%).
“However minimal modifications within the contributions by hydropower, biomass, and geothermal, renewable vitality sources have doubled their share of US producing capability and electrical output over the previous 10 years because of explosive development by each wind and photo voltaic,” famous the SUN DAY Marketing campaign’s govt director Ken Bossong. “If the developments of the previous decade proceed, renewable vitality sources may account for 40% or extra of capability and precise technology by 2035.”
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