Fossil Fuels No Longer Majority of US Electrical energy!

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Final Up to date on: twentieth April 2025, 12:00 am

The cleantech revolution continues on — each … single … day. It looks as if such a short while that we’ve gone from the massive milestone of photo voltaic and wind energy offering greater than 50% of latest energy capability additions within the US to photo voltaic and wind energy now offering nearly 100% of latest energy capability additions within the US. Although, even throughout all of that development, the tough factor to have a look at is how slowly it takes to transition the precise electrical energy era provide. So, it’s significantly uplifting to see that final month, we crossed one other massive milestone — lower than 50% of US electrical energy was produced by fossil fuels for the primary time on report.

Naturally, whereas photo voltaic and wind energy alone didn’t present the vast majority of the nation’s electrical energy (but), they did attain new month-to-month information. Collectively, they accounted for twenty-four.4% of whole US electrical energy era. The expansion simply retains going regular, and even dashing up. Electrical energy from solar energy grew by 37% in March 12 months over 12 months (by 8.3 terawatt-hours) whereas electrical energy from wind energy grew by 12% (or 5.7 terawatt-hours). 2024 as an entire, photo voltaic and wind energy mixed for 17% of US electrical energy era. So, even in comparison with final 12 months, photo voltaic and wind are in complete new territory.

“In March 2025, fossil fuels accounted for lower than 50% (49.2%) of electrical energy generated, for the primary month on report. This surpasses the earlier month-to-month report low of 51% set in April 2024,” Ember writes. Electrical energy from fossil fuels, in the meantime, dropped by 2.5% (-4.3 TWh).

Ember notes that fossil fuels accounted for 65% of US electrical energy era a decade in the past (in March 2015). I really bear in mind reporting on that. (How time flies!) The tempo of change appeared so glacial again then, however it’s a notable accomplishment to get fossil fuels’ share down from 65% to 49% in a decade. Might it’s quicker? Actually!

Solar energy, in the meantime went from 1% of US electrical energy to 9.2% of US electrical energy in that decade. Once more, after I was producing month-to-month electrical energy era reviews and we had been at simply 1% for photo voltaic, it was simple to be pessimistic and bitter, however we had been excited to spotlight solar energy’s speedy development and a few optimistic long-term projections. (I really recall engaged on a report that included that 1% determine for photo voltaic whereas driving on a tram in Poland.) Time has proven that we’d make monumental progress, and the approaching decade will once more present a speedy rise in solar energy’ share of US electrical energy era — in actual fact, it ought to gobble up market share even quicker.

“It is a first sign that the US is approaching a tipping level the place clear energy takes the lead over fossil era, and the place the significance of coal and fuel inevitably begins to fade. Wind and solar energy are pushing fossil fuels out of the combo. The fact on the bottom just isn’t one in every of a return to fossil fuels within the US, it’s the continued development of photo voltaic and wind energy that would be the dominant driver of electrical energy era development within the US,” Nicolas Fulghum, ‍Senior Information Analyst at Ember, added. I just like the quote lots — that’s why I included it — however I’ve to say this isn’t the primary sign. We’ve been seeing alerts that that is the place we’re headed for at the very least a decade.

Keep tuned. The enjoyable is simply starting!