April 2019 brings America’s clean energy revolution to the verge of a tipping point. For the first time in the history of the United States, the renewable energy sector has generated more electricity than coal. This great news was in a recent report published by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA).
The IEEFA wrote in its report:
“Coal’s proponents may dismiss these monthly and quarterly ups and downs in generation share as unimportant, but we believe they are indicative of the fundamental disruption happening across the electric generation sector. As natural gas achieved earlier, renewable generation is catching up to coal, and faster than forecast.”
The once long-reigning king of the power sector, coal, was dethroned recently by natural gas, a much cleaner burning fossil fuel; and now it’s getting pushed down farther by wind and solar power.
Dennis Wamstead, a research analyst at IEEFA, said:
“Five years ago this never would have been close to happening. The transition that’s going on in the electric sector in the United States has been phenomenal.”
To put things into perspective, just 10 years ago America’s renewable energy had little presence other than hydropower. Then suddenly a wave of investment — first into wind, and then solar — washed in and made these new technologies far more affordable.
Meanwhile, increased awareness began to spread among the people across the country about climate change. That knowledge led many American businesses, households and state legislatures to demand cleaner energy. “Renewables are just a better bet at the moment,” Wamstead said.
Better for our survival, obviously. In 2015, the energy produced from natural gas exceeded that from coal for the first time and has stayed on top ever since — natural gas now produces 35% of the country’s electricity, compared to coal’s share of 27%.
It has been projected by US government statistics that renewable energy (hydro, biomass, wind, solar and geothermal) will start to sporadically exceed coal in 2019 and 2020. However, it isn’t expected to surpass coal on an annual basis for several years.
The months that it does pass are seasonal related. In other words, certain seasons, like springtime, require less energy usage because there is no need for heating (furnace) or cooling (air conditioning) of buildings. Some coal plants even shut down for maintenance during the spring when demand for electricity is low. There’s also the fact that the spring tends to be a strong period for hydro and wind power. Nevertheless, the clean energy transition is accelerating.
America’s coal appetite continues to shrink despite President Trump’s promise to rejuvenate the coal industry by slashing regulation. Coal continues to rapidly decline with its share of total power generation tumbling from 45% in 2010 to 28% in 2018. And it’s only expected to keep dropping with a projected dip to just 24% in 2020.
Renewable energy, on the other hand, is projected to be the fastest-growing source for power generation for at least the next two years, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) numbers. A recent report issued by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) revealed that two-thirds of new energy installed in 2019 was renewable energy.
Coal Retirement
According to Wamstead, the average coal plant is about 40 years old. They typically have a lifespan of around 40 to 60 years before getting phased out. As they age, these plants require more maintenance and repairs, making renewable power all that much more attractive. On top of that, according to a report released last month by nonpartisan think tank Energy Innovation, Wind and solar costs have plunged so drastically that 74% of the US coal fleet could be replaced by renewable energy and still save customers money. The biggest problem for coal seems to be economics.
