Electricity from renewables exceeded that from coal in 2022

Wind turbiunes near Palm Springs, California (File photo by Ashley Landis, The Associated Press)

The U.S. Energy Information Administration says more electricity was generated from renewables than from coal in the U.S. in 2022 for the first time ever; 22% came from renewables and 20% from coal. Coal generation is being replaced largely by natural gas, which produced 39% of American electricity last year, up from 37% in 2021. Almost a third of gas came from Northern Appalachia.

"The growth of wind and solar significantly drove the increase in renewable energy and experts say these two resources will be the 'backbone' of clean energy growth in the U.S. because of their reliability and affordability," Isaella O'Malley of The Associated Press reports.

California produced 26% of the nation's utility-scale solar electricity followed by Texas with 16% and North Carolina with 8%. The most wind generation occurred in Texas, which had 26% of the U.S. total followed by Iowa (10%) and Oklahoma (9%).

Gregory Wetstone, president and CEO of the American Council on Renewable Energy, told AP, “Over the past decade, the levelized cost of wind energy declined by 70 percent, while the levelized cost of solar power has declined by an even more impressive 90 percent. Renewable energy is now the most affordable source of new electricity in much of the country.”

The changes are a challenge because the energy grid was built "to deliver power from a consistent source," AP notes. "Renewables such as solar and wind generate power intermittently, so battery storage, long-distance transmission and other steps will be needed to help address these challenges," according to Stephen Porder, a Brown University professor of ecology and assistant provost for sustainability.