US States with the Cleanest Energy Grids

As renewable energy capacity grows across the United States, solar and wind now account for more than half of generating capacity in two states.

These are not the largest states in terms of absolute capacity gains, such as California and Texas. Wind and solar installations are growing in these two states, but they do not have the largest share of renewable energy in their generating capacity.

According to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) and the Cleanview energy data platform, cited by Reuters columnist Gavin Maguire, the top U.S. states in which more than 50% of their generating capacity comes from wind and solar are Iowa and New Mexico.

In Iowa, the second largest producer of wind energy after Texas, combined wind and solar capacity accounts for 55.43% of public power generation capacity, of which 54.1% comes from wind and 1.3% from solar.

In New Mexico, 50.78% of generating capacity comes from wind and solar energy, with wind accounting for 37.1% and solar accounting for 13.7%.

Renewable energy is the largest source of total electricity generation in New Mexico. In 2023, wind power alone accounted for 38% of the state’s total energy production, according to EIA data. In less than a decade, the share of renewable energy sources has grown, as the total amount of electricity generated from renewable sources was more than six times greater in 2023 than in 2015.

New Mexico is in the top five states for wind energy potential. Last year, wind energy accounted for 81% of New Mexico’s renewable energy production and was the largest share of the state’s total energy production, at 38%.

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New Mexico ranked ninth in the nation in wind capacity at the end of 2023, with about 4,400 megawatts (MW) installed. The state is planning to add another 1,800 MW of solar and associated battery storage capacity this year.

In Iowa, nearly two-thirds of its total net electricity generation came from renewable sources in 2022, almost all from wind, according to EIA data. The state was the second-largest producer of wind energy after Texas. Wind power powered 62% of Iowa’s net generation, the highest share of any U.S. state.

As Iowa’s wind capacity grows, coal’s share of electricity generation in the state has fallen to 25% of total net electricity production in 2022, down from 44% five years earlier.

While wind and solar capacity is growing rapidly, natural gas continues to be the backbone of U.S. power systems, and coal’s share of the U.S. energy mix still exceeds 15%, greater than any other renewable energy source.

Combined energy production from all renewable sources (wind, solar, hydro, biomass and geothermal) has surpassed coal-fired energy production in the US power sector for the first time in 2022. However, coal still accounts for about 16% of electricity generation, which is more than the share of wind (about 11%), hydropower (6%) and solar (4%) in the electricity generation mix.

Fossil fuels currently provide 60% of total electricity generation in the U.S. Last year, gas accounted for 43% and coal for more than 16%.

Coal and natural gas provide a reliable source of energy when intermittent wind power production fails.

Natural gas electricity production has surged in recent weeks amid high electricity demand amid unusually high temperatures nationwide and a significant decline in wind power generation. Earlier this week, natural gas electricity production surged amid the lowest wind power production in 33 months. A hot summer with low wind speeds has led to low wind power production, prompting power producers to increase natural gas electricity production to meet summer electricity demand.

Natural gas is expected to provide about 42% of America’s electricity needs this year, similar to last year. Overall use is expected to grow 3% in 2024 and another 2% in 2025, according to the EIA.

Author: Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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