Current:Home > MarketsSolar and wind generated more electricity than coal for record 5 months-InfoLens
Solar and wind generated more electricity than coal for record 5 months
View Date:2024-12-23 15:26:16
Solar and wind power hit a new record this year, generating more U.S. power than coal for the first five months of the year, according to preliminary data from the Energy Information Administration.
It's the first time on record that wind and solar have out-produced coal for five months, according to industry publication, E&E News, which first calculated the figures.
Official EIA data, which is released with a lag, shows wind and solar energy out-producing coal for January, February and March, while real-time figures "indicate that same trend continued in April and May," EIA spokesperson Chris Higginbotham said in an email.
- For the first time, more money is going into solar power than oil
- As renewable use rises, recycling renewable waste becoming more urgent
- USPS purchases thousands of electric vehicles and charging stations
When hydroelectric power is counted among the renewable mix, that record stretches to over six months, with renewables beating out coal starting last October, according to the EIA.
Cheaper than coal
"From a production-cost perspective, renewables are the cheapest thing to use — wind and solar. So, we're going to see more and more of these records," said Ram Rajagopal, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Stanford University.
The figure marks a new high for clean power and a steep decline in coal-fired power generation, which as recently as 10 years ago made up 40% of the nation's electricity. And while the monthly figures are preliminary and could be revised in the coming months, according to the EIA, more renewables in the pipeline mean that coal power is set to keep falling.
"We expect that the United States will generate less electricity from coal this year than in any year this century," EIA Administrator Joe DeCarolis said in May. "As electricity providers generate more electricity from renewable sources, we see electricity generated from coal decline over the next year and a half."
For years, coal power has been declining, pushed out by increasingly cheap natural gas — also a fossil fuel — driven by a hydraulic fracturing boom. But coal saw a brief resurgence last year when natural gas prices shot up in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, leading some utilities in the U.S. and Europe to sign on coal-powered generators.
Globally, coal use reached a new high in 2022, however, its bounceback has been short-lived in the U.S., as coal plants in the country retire at a steady pace. Six coal-fueled generating units have been closed so far this year.
The retirement of coal is good news for the climate. As the most-polluting energy source, coal is responsible for more than half of carbon emissions from electricity-production, despite it making up less than 20% of the grid. However, recent research on natural gas casts doubt on its comparative "clean" status.
The Inflation Reduction Act, which dedicated billions of dollars to the expansion of clean energy, promises to boost the renewable buildout even further. But constructing more clean energy plants is only half the battle, Rajagopal said. The other half is connecting those new renewable sources to the nation's electrical grid, a process that is taking longer and longer.
Connecting to the grid
On average, a project — such as a wind, solar or hybrid plant — that went online in 2022, waited five years from the time it requested a connection to the grid until it began commercial operations, according to a recent report from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. That's up from less than two years for projects built between 2000 and 2007, the April report found.
More than 10,000 projects representing 1,350 gigawatts of generating capacity are awaiting hookup to the grid, the vast majority of those zero-carbon, the LBNL said.
- Wind energy powered the U.K. more than gas for first time
- China's ongoing "coal boom" risks "climate disasters," Greenpeace says
- French nuclear energy firm reports crack in pipe at aging plant
"There are many hundreds of gigawatts of projects in interconnection queues of the United States," Rajagopal said.
"Even if we wanted to accelerate [renewables] more, there is this pipe, and we have to make sure everything fits into the pipe, and making sure it all gets approved takes time."
- In:
- Renewable Energy
- Solar Power
- Wind Power
veryGood! (58569)
Related
- DWTS’ Sasha Farber and Jenn Tran Prove They're Closer Than Ever Amid Romance Rumors
- Abercrombie & Fitch, former CEO Mike Jeffries accused of running trafficking operation
- 49ers QB Brock Purdy cleared to start against Bengals after concussion in Week 7
- Winners and losers of college football's Week 9: Kansas rises up to knock down Oklahoma
- The Best Gifts for Men – That He Won’t Want to Return
- AP Sources: Auto workers and Stellantis reach tentative contract deal that follows model set by Ford
- Less boo for your buck: For the second Halloween in a row, US candy inflation hits double digits
- Former Vice President Mike Pence ends campaign for the White House after struggling to gain traction
- Benny Blanco Reveals Selena Gomez's Rented Out Botanical Garden for Lavish Date Night
- Protect Your Car (and Sanity) With This Genius Waterproof Seat Hoodie
Ranking
- Insurance magnate pleads guilty as government describes $2B scheme
- Israel strikes near Gaza’s largest hospital after accusing Hamas of using it as a base
- Heidi Klum's Jaw-Dropping Costumes Prove She's the Queen of Halloween
- 49ers QB Brock Purdy cleared to start against Bengals after concussion in Week 7
- Pennsylvania House Republicans pick new floor leader after failing to regain majority
- Justin Trudeau, friends, actors and fans mourn Matthew Perry
- Rangers star Corey Seager shows raw emotion in dramatic World Series comeback
- Parents of Liverpool's Luis Díaz kidnapped in Colombia
Recommendation
-
LSU leads college football Week 11 Misery Index after College Football Playoff hopes go bust
-
A man is arrested in a deadly double shooting near a Donaldsonville High football game
-
Louisiana and Amtrak agree to revive train service between New Orleans, Baton Rouge
-
Travis Kelce's latest play: A line of food dishes including BBQ brisket, sold at Walmart
-
Wisconsin agency issues first round of permits for Enbridge Line 5 reroute around reservation
-
Flames vs. Oilers in NHL Heritage Classic: Time, TV, weather for Commonwealth Stadium
-
Deion Sanders after his son gets painkiller injection in loss: `You go get new linemen'
-
Indianapolis police say 1 dead, 9 others injured in overnight shooting at Halloween party