4 ms·

I'd be curious, is this at the expense of coal? Or has demand just grown because of cheaper electricity due to more supply being available.

philipkglass 4y ago
Coal generated electricity peaked in the United States in 2007. Since then it has dramatically declined both percentage-wise and absolutely: https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/electricity/electricity-in-the-us.php https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/electricity/electricity-... https://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.php?t=table_6_07_a https://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.ph... In 2022 coal generated electricity was down to 854 terawatt hours from 2,016 terawatt hours in 2007. It's declining even more this year: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=55960 https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=55960 In our March Short-Term Energy Outlook, we forecast the wind share of the U.S. generation mix will increase from 11% last year to 12% this year. We forecast that the solar share will grow to 5% in 2023, up from 4% last year. The natural gas share of generation is forecast to remain unchanged from last year (39%); the coal share of generation is forecast to decline from 20% last year to 17% in 2023.
kube-system 4y ago
The increase of natural gas has been at the expense of coal. Many existing coal plants can be converted over to run on gas, which became economically viable as the shale boom has made natural gas more plentiful and it is easier to meet emissions standards. https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=44636 https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=44636
- marcosdumay 4y ago
  It's more complicate than that, because the renewables replace natural gas utilization much quicker than they replace natural gas capacity. Your link is about capacity, and it is not clear how much it has been used.
  - kube-system 4y ago
    The drop in total power generated amount by coal (since the peak in 07) has mostly been absorbed by natural gas, with a smaller fraction taken by renewables. https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/electricity/electricity-in-the-us.php https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/electricity/electricity-...
    - marcosdumay 4y ago
      Thanks, that's a much more relevant view. Yes, much more than half of it. But renewables absorbed a visible share of it.
      - cinntaile 4y ago
        To further put this in perspective (2007-2021 data from the source above). Gas absorbed about 60 percent, while renewables absorbed about 40. The numbers are in billion kilowatthours. Coal usage was reduced by 1117, in the same time period gas went up with 678 and renewables went up with 473.
    - deelowe 4y ago
      That jives with my anecdotal experience. All of the power plants around me have been converted to natural gas.
kibwen 4y ago
Coal has been on the decline for quite a while now, mostly because it's been outcompeted by natural gas as a fuel source for conventional burn-a-thing-to-boil-water power plants. However, despite coal's decline, let's not discount the impressiveness of this achievement. Renewable sources have made huge strides over the past few years, and the growth of renewables is accelerating year-over-year. It feels like we've hit an inflection point WRT to renewable adoption, where it's simultaneously economical, politically popular, and proven to be practical.
kasperni 4y ago
> Or has demand just grown because of cheaper electricity due to more supply being available. The world have an ever increasing demand for more electricity. Even though we add lots of wind and solar generation every year. It is not enough to meet the increase in demand. However, we are very close, and 2023 [1] could be the year where we could see an actual decline of fossile fuel usage for electricity generation for the first time. [1] https://ember-climate.org/insights/research/global-electricity-review-2023/ https://ember-climate.org/insights/research/global-electrici...
pavon 4y ago
To add to what other have already said, electricity generation in the US has be flat since 2007. There has been no significant increase in supply.

philipkglass 4y ago

Coal generated electricity peaked in the United States in 2007. Since then it has dramatically declined both percentage-wise and absolutely: https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/electricity/electricity-in-the-us.php https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/electricity/electricity-... https://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.php?t=table_6_07_a https://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.ph... In 2022 coal generated electricity was down to 854 terawatt hours from 2,016 terawatt hours in 2007. It's declining even more this year: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=55960 https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=55960 In our March Short-Term Energy Outlook, we forecast the wind share of the U.S. generation mix will increase from 11% last year to 12% this year. We forecast that the solar share will grow to 5% in 2023, up from 4% last year. The natural gas share of generation is forecast to remain unchanged from last year (39%); the coal share of generation is forecast to decline from 20% last year to 17% in 2023.

kube-system 4y ago

The increase of natural gas has been at the expense of coal. Many existing coal plants can be converted over to run on gas, which became economically viable as the shale boom has made natural gas more plentiful and it is easier to meet emissions standards. https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=44636 https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=44636

marcosdumay 4y ago
It's more complicate than that, because the renewables replace natural gas utilization much quicker than they replace natural gas capacity. Your link is about capacity, and it is not clear how much it has been used.
- kube-system 4y ago
  The drop in total power generated amount by coal (since the peak in 07) has mostly been absorbed by natural gas, with a smaller fraction taken by renewables. https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/electricity/electricity-in-the-us.php https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/electricity/electricity-...
  - marcosdumay 4y ago
    Thanks, that's a much more relevant view. Yes, much more than half of it. But renewables absorbed a visible share of it.
    - cinntaile 4y ago
      To further put this in perspective (2007-2021 data from the source above). Gas absorbed about 60 percent, while renewables absorbed about 40. The numbers are in billion kilowatthours. Coal usage was reduced by 1117, in the same time period gas went up with 678 and renewables went up with 473.
  - deelowe 4y ago
    That jives with my anecdotal experience. All of the power plants around me have been converted to natural gas.

kibwen 4y ago

Coal has been on the decline for quite a while now, mostly because it's been outcompeted by natural gas as a fuel source for conventional burn-a-thing-to-boil-water power plants. However, despite coal's decline, let's not discount the impressiveness of this achievement. Renewable sources have made huge strides over the past few years, and the growth of renewables is accelerating year-over-year. It feels like we've hit an inflection point WRT to renewable adoption, where it's simultaneously economical, politically popular, and proven to be practical.

kasperni 4y ago

> Or has demand just grown because of cheaper electricity due to more supply being available. The world have an ever increasing demand for more electricity. Even though we add lots of wind and solar generation every year. It is not enough to meet the increase in demand. However, we are very close, and 2023 [1] could be the year where we could see an actual decline of fossile fuel usage for electricity generation for the first time. [1] https://ember-climate.org/insights/research/global-electricity-review-2023/ https://ember-climate.org/insights/research/global-electrici...

pavon 4y ago

To add to what other have already said, electricity generation in the US has be flat since 2007. There has been no significant increase in supply.