http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/articles/2017/02/renewables-now-account-for-nearly-one-fifth-of-total-us-generating-capacity.html
[links in on-line article]
Renewables Now Account for Nearly One-Fifth of Total US Generating Capacity
February 6, 2017
By Kenneth Bossong
Washington DC — Renewable energy dominated new U.S. electrical
generation put into service during 2016, according to the latest issue
of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (FERC) monthly "Energy
Infrastructure Update,” released last week with data through Dec. 31, 2016.
Combined, newly installed capacity from renewable sources (i.e.,
biomass, geothermal, hydropower, solar, wind) totaled 16,124 MW or 61.5
percent, surpassing that from natural gas (8,689 MW), nuclear power
(1,270 MW), oil (58 MW), and coal (45 MW) combined.
This is the second year in a row in which the majority of new generating
capacity came from renewable energy sources. In 2015, renewable sources
added 12,400 MW of new generating capacity, or 64.8 percent of the
total. Almost half of new capacity (49.6 percent) came from renewables
in 2014.
During calendar year 2016, new wind generating capacity grew by 7,865 MW
and was nearly matched by new solar generating capacity (7,748 MW).
There was also 314 MW of new hydropower capacity and 197 MW of new
biomass capacity; there was no new geothermal steam capacity added in 2016.
The rapid growth of renewables — particularly solar and wind — resulted
in their seizing an ever-growing share of the nation's total generating
capacity. Five years ago, renewable sources cumulatively accounted for
14.26 percent of total available installed generating capacity; now they
provide almost one-fifth (19.17 percent): hydropower, 8.50 percent;
wind, 6.92 percent; solar, 2 percent; biomass, 1.42 percent; and
geothermal, 0.33 percent.
Each of the non-hydro renewables has grown during the past half-decade
and their combined capacity (10.67 percent) is now greater than that of
nuclear power (9.00 percent) and nearly three times that of oil (3.79
percent).
By comparison, the shares of the nation's energy capacity provided by
oil, nuclear power, and coal have all declined. Today, oil's share is
only 3.79 percent, nuclear power is 9 percent, and coal is 24.65 percent
— five years ago, they were 4.61 percent, 9.44 percent, and 29.91
percent, respectively. Only natural gas has experienced modest growth
and that is from 41.6 percent in 2011 to 43.23 percent today.
The greatest percentage increase of any energy source has been
experienced by solar whose share of the nation's generating capacity (2
percent) is now nearly 12 times greater than in December 2011 (0.17
percent). Moreover, its growth is accelerating — new solar capacity in
2016 (7,748 MW) more than doubled that added in 2015 (3,521 MW). It now
exceeds that of biomass and geothermal combined.
The focus of the new Trump Administration on fossil fuels is not only
environmentally irresponsible but totally wrong-headed in light of the
latest FERC data. Year-after-year, renewables are proving themselves to
be the energy sources making America great again.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission released its most recent 8-page
"Energy Infrastructure Update," with data for calendar years 2015 and
2016, on February 1, 2017. See the tables titled "New Generation
In-Service (New Build and Expansion)" and "Total Available Installed
Generating Capacity" here. FERC data for December 2011 can be found here.
Note that generating capacity is not the same as actual generation.
Electrical production per MW of available capacity (i.e., capacity
factor) for renewables is often lower than that for fossil fuels and
nuclear power. As noted, the total installed operating generating
capacity provided by renewables in 2016 is now 19.17 percent of the
nation's total whereas actual electrical generation from renewables
year-to-date (according to the latest U.S. Energy Information
Administration figures) is roughly 15.2 percent. However, both of these
figures understate renewables' actual contribution because neither EIA
nor FERC fully accounts for all electricity generated by smaller-scale,
distributed renewable energy sources. FERC's data, for example, is
limited to plants with nameplate capacity of 1 MW or greater and thereby
fail to include distributed sources such as rooftop solar.
