Through the first three quarters of 2024, renewables elevated their output by virtually 9% year-over-year, and photo voltaic remains to be main the cost, reviews the US Vitality Data Administration (EIA).
Photo voltaic’s large development
In keeping with the EIA’s “Electrical Energy Month-to-month” report, which incorporates information by means of September 2024, solar energy era (together with each utility-scale and rooftop installations) shot up by 25.9% in comparison with the primary 9 months of 2023.
Utility-scale photo voltaic grew even quicker – up 30.1% – whereas small-scale photo voltaic (principally rooftop) elevated by 16.2%. Mixed, photo voltaic contributed greater than 7% of the whole electrical energy generated within the US to this point this 12 months.
Zooming in on September, utility-scale photo voltaic era grew by a whopping 29% in comparison with September 2023, and rooftop photo voltaic climbed by 14.2%. Mixed, photo voltaic generated 7.5% of the nation’s electrical energy that month.
Small-scale photo voltaic made up almost 30% of all photo voltaic era from January to September and supplied 2% of the nation’s electrical energy. Curiously, small-scale photo voltaic is now producing virtually double the electrical energy of utility-scale biomass, and over 5 instances that of both geothermal or petroleum-based energy.
Wind and renewables combine
Wind energy additionally noticed robust development to this point this 12 months. From January to September, wind output was up 6.6% in comparison with final 12 months. Wind nonetheless holds the highest spot amongst renewables, making up 9.9% of US electrical energy era within the first 9 months of 2024.
The mixed contribution of wind and photo voltaic supplied 17% of the US’s electrical energy for the primary three-quarters of 2024. Altogether, renewables – together with wind, photo voltaic, hydropower, biomass, and geothermal – equipped 24% of US electrical energy in that interval, in comparison with 22.8% throughout the identical time final 12 months.
The numbers present that renewables are rising a lot quicker than conventional power sources. For instance, within the first 9 months of 2024, renewables grew by 8.6%, which is greater than double the expansion price of pure fuel (4.1%) and virtually seven instances that of nuclear (1.3%). Even in September alone, renewable energy era was up 7.9% in comparison with September 2023, making up 21.3% of complete electrical energy era that month.
Different notable tendencies
From January to September, wind generated 76.4% extra electrical energy than hydropower, and photo voltaic surpassed hydropower by 27.2%. In September alone, wind and photo voltaic produced 73.5% and 65.9% extra electrical energy, respectively, than hydropower, as a consequence of drought circumstances, notably within the Pacific Northwest.
For the primary 9 months of 2024, wind and photo voltaic collectively produced 14.5% extra electrical energy than coal and got here near catching up with nuclear energy’s share of electrical energy era (17% in comparison with nuclear’s 17.6%). This development has solidified renewables’ place because the second-largest supply of electrical energy era within the US, behind pure fuel.
Ken Bossong, government director of the SUN DAY Marketing campaign, which reviewed the EIA’s information, put it merely: “Renewable power sources now account for 1 / 4 of the nation’s electrical energy. Any try by the incoming Trump Administration to undermine renewables would have critical adverse impacts on each the nation’s electrical energy provide and the financial system.”
Learn extra: US photo voltaic and wind development defies expectations – a decade in numbers
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