It is expected that the U.S. will generate more electricity from renewables than it will from coal for the first time ever this April
The forecast from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) also suggests the pattern could run on into May.
Dennis Warmsted, of the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA), makes the excellent point that this time of year is traditionally when coal plants will come offline to do a few bits of routine maintenance. Demand is low in the spring, and for residential users at least, is expected to be 5% down on what it was last year. That routine is part of the electricity sector itself so should not diminish the milestone.
Last year the U.S. added 10.6GW of solar, according to Wood Mackenzie. That’s in spite of President Trump’s trade tariffs on solar panels that had threatened to create supply headaches. It added 7.6GW of wind, according to the World Wind Energy Association (WWEA).
At the same time, Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) called 2018 the biggest ever year for coal plant closures with 16GW expected to close.
In the UK the trend for growing renewables output is sealed, with coal power being entirely phased out by 2025. Coal generation in the UK has been repeatedly dialed down to zero for days on end. The sunny Easter weekend broke the record for the length of time without any coal generation feeding into the mix at all. In total there were 90-hours of coal-free generation.
Back in the States, gas has already taken the lead on coal permanently, having had its own sporadic periods in the front seat over a period of several years.
But gas is also in the firing line for renewables. For those mulling new-build gas, for certain applications, the additional benefits of choosing solar and energy storage systems are winning out.
Just this week Southern California Edison signed up for six additional energy storage systems citing the need to compensate for a shortfall in gas generation after the Aliso Canyon gas leak.
So the utilities appear to be on board, under the right circumstances. The economics underpinning energy storage is only going to improve creating a more resilient grid for the ongoing increase in the deployment of renewables. The mooted tax credit for standalone energy storage installations would help that cause even more.
The economic and practical realities on the ground very much match up with the forecasts coming out of the EIA.
