According to a recent forecast from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, solar panels and batteries will account for more than 80% of new power capacity installed in the U.S. this year. The record growth of these technologies is hastening the decline of coal power in this country.
Solar power alone will account for more than half of the country’s new power capacity and most of it will be in Texas and California.
Wind power is expected to provide only 12% of new capacity this year. Wind is facing rising costs, lengthy permitting, public backlash, and clear opposition from the Trump administration which is determined to stifle its growth.
As renewable energy grows, coal power continues to decline. The U.S. will retire twice as much coal power this year as it did last year, closing about 5% of the country’s capacity. Not only are older coal plants shutting down; the remaining plants are generating less power.
One of the most significant changes in technology over the last few decades has been the massive drop in the cost of clean energy. Solar photovoltaic costs have fallen by 90% in the past decade, onshore wind by 70%, and batteries by more than 90%. The connection between cost reduction and volume has been very strong: costs of these technologies have fallen by around 20% every time global cumulative capacity doubles. Over the past 40 years, solar power has transformed from one of the most expensive electricity sources to the cheapest in many countries. That trend is likely to continue. Setting politics aside, market forces generally are the strongest driver.
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U.S. Solar and Batteries Headed for Record Year
Photo, posted December 16, 2024, courtesy of Bureau of Land Management California via Flickr.
Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio
