The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) recently released its Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO). According to the STEO, wind energy is expected to increase this year.
EIA found that non hydro-powered renewables provided slightly less than 10% of electricity generation in 2017, and are expected to provide 10% in 2018 and nearly 11% in 2019.
In 2017, EIA estimated that on average wind generated 697,000 megawatt-hours per day (MWh/d). EIA projects that generation from wind will rise to 722,000 MWh/d in 2018 and to 778,000 MWh/d in 2019.
If factors such as precipitation and snowpack remain as forecast, conventional hydropower is also projected to generate 747,000 MWh/d in 2019 — which would make it the first year that wind generation exceeds hydropower generation.
Total solar electricity generation averaged an estimated 211,000 MWh/d in 2017. EIA projects that it will reach 246,000 MWh/d in 2018 and 294,000 MWh/d in 2019.
Additionally, EIA forecasts coal production to decline by almost 5% to 736 million short tons (MMst) in 2018 and then increase by 1% to 745 MMst in 2019. Lower expected global demand for U.S. coal exports (down 17% in 2018 and another 5% in 2019), and lower forecasts of coal use in the electric power sector (down 5% in 2018) contribute to the forecast of lower coal production.
The full STEO can be downloaded here.
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