The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecasts that the largest increases in U.S. electricity generation this summer (includes June, July, and August) will come from solar, wind and natural gas-fired power plants
According to EIA’s June Short-Term Energy Outlook, the increase from these sources will likely be offset by reduced generation from coal-fired power plants. Between June 2022 and May 2023, about 11 GW of U.S. coal capacity retired, and EIA expects 15% (36 TWh) less U.S. coal-fired generation this summer compared with Summer 2022.
Because of additional natural gas-fired generating capacity and favorable fuel costs, EIA expects U.S. gas-fired generation to grow by 3% (or 16.7 TWh) this summer compared with last year.
But a large share of America’s new generating capacity built in over the past few years is powered by solar or wind. The U.S. electric power sector added an estimated 14.5 gigawatts (GW) of solar and about 8 GW of wind during the 12 months ending May 31, 2023.
Wind power has been the leading source of new renewable electricity generation in recent years and is an especially important component of the generation mix for some regions during the spring months.
U.S. wind-powered generation this summer could be 7% (5.8 TWh) higher than last summer, according to EIA.
