subscribe
March 2017 proved to be a historic month for renewable energy. According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), March was the first time that monthly electricity generation from wind and solar accounted for over 10 percent of the total electricity generation in the United States. This news comes after developers added 22.2 gigawatts of wind and solar to the grid in 2016, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance.
The EIA included utility-scale wind and solar projects as well as small-scale solar PV systems in its analysis. Of the total 10 percent, wind accounted for 8 percent, whereas solar accounted for 2 percent. According to the EIA, Texas has the largest total amount of wind and solar generation (the vast majority of which comes from wind). Iowa has the largest percentage with 37 percent of its total electricity generation in 2016 coming from renewables (the vast majority of which also comes from wind).
While the total percentage of electricity generation coming from wind and solar will dip back below 10 percent in the coming months due to seasonal variations, the percentage will likely continue to increase in the coming years as developers add new systems to states with developed markets and begin entering states with underdeveloped markets.
The EIA article can be found here and the Electric Power Monthlyreport issued by the EIA can be found here.
