There have been major shifts in energy consumption in the United States over the years. As such, the overtaking of coal usage by wind and solar power is one of the most notable.
Coal Outplaced by Wind and Solar in the US
According to Live Science, the new feat is recorded as the first time other energy sources overtook coal. Specifically, the types of energy were wind and solar power, which produced more terawatt-hours recently.
Within the year's first five months, wind and solar produced more terawatt-hours than coal. As such, coal only generated 249 TWh, while the combination resulted in 252 TWh. The new feat is recorded as the first time that even without hydroelectric power, coal was still outperformed by renewable energy.
Live Science details how this comes amid a major shift in US energy facilities, with a continual decline in coal usage. As such, renewable energy facilities are replacing coal resulting in more of the latter's facilities shutting down.
Forecasts expect the US to generate less coal energy this year than any year this century, according to Joe DeCaloris, who is the administrator for the EIA.
Coal Usage in the US
In 2007, the US was at the peak of its coal usage, accounting for almost half of its overall energy production. As such, coal cemented itself with a solid 49.9% of all the total energy produced, according to EIA.
Chris Higginbotham, who is a spokesperson at EIA, gave a statement to E&E News regarding the energy shift. They highlighted how they looked at the Electrical Power Monthly for their estimates and found that coal had been taken over for three months by wind and solar.
Per Live Science, wind and solar overtook coal energy production in January, February, and March. During that time, they expected the trend to continue in April and May.
Coal Demand Amid War in Ukraine
The demand in coal experienced a brief resurgence last year amid the war in Ukraine, resulting in soaring natural gas prices. Despite this, natural gas production and global economic factors have resulted in prices recovering.
The World Bank also explained that the different economic and natural gas production factors have even caused the demand for coal to decline. As such, there have been major shutdowns for the US coal capacities since the start of 2022.
From April 2022 until now, Carbon Monitor reports that fossil fuel emissions have seen a 5.6% decline. The change reflects new policies being made by the US regarding energy and how it's trying to shift to more carbon-neutral energy sources.
In 2022, PBS reported that natural gas remains the largest power source in the US. However, the changes in policy result in the expected reliance on this power source to reach 37% in 2024, after potentially falling to at least 38% this year.
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