According to the EIA, 2019 should mark the first year that wind energy exceeds hydropower generation in the U.S.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) recently released its Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO). According to the STEO, non-hydropower renewables (such as wind and solar energy) provided slightly less than 10% of electricity generation in 2017, and are expected to provide more than 10% in 2018 and nearly 11% in 2019.
In terms of wind power, EIA forecasts that generation will rise to 741,000 MWh/d in 2018 and to 766,000 MWh/d in 2019. If factors such as precipitation and snowpack remain as forecast, conventional hydropower is forecast to generate 747,000 MWh/d in 2019, making it the first year that wind generation would exceed hydropower generation in the United States.
“The growing rate of consumption from solar will slow in 2018 and 2019, but remains the fastest growing source of consumption among non-hydroelectric renewables,” states the report. “Wind energy, however, is the largest renewable source in terms of capacity and the largest non-hydroelectric renewable source in terms of generation and consumption, though wind will even overtake hydro in terms of generation and consumption for the first time in 2019.”
The full STEO can be downloaded here.
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