The top US states for renewable power generation capacity: Maguire
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By Gavin Maguire
LITTLETON, Colorado, July 25 (Reuters) -California and Texas are the two largest producers of electricity from renewable power, and dominate most discussions about renewable energy generation in the United States.
But several other states have developed far larger shares of renewable capacity within their utility-scale generation systems, and so draw a greater proportion of clean power in state energy systems.
By ranking the amount of renewable capacity within utility generation systems, it is clear that several other states beyond California and Texas are helping to drive energy transition efforts across the United States.
CLEAN CAPACITY
In terms of total renewable energy capacity at the utility level, Iowa and New Mexico come out on top and are the only states that boast more than 50% of utility-scale generation capacity from renewable sources.
In total, 55.43% of Iowa's utility generation capacity comes from renewables (54.1% from wind and 1.3% from solar), according to energy data platform Cleanview and the United States Energy Administration (EIA).
In New Mexico, renewables account for 50.78% of utility capacity, with wind accounting for 37.1% of total capacity and solar 13.7%.
South Dakota, Kansas and North Dakota round out the top five spots in terms of renewable capacity within utility-scale generation systems, and all boast renewable shares of roughly 44%.
SOLAR VARIATION
A key feature among the states with the largest renewable generation capacity is the high reliance on wind power, which accounts for an average 80% of the total installed renewable capacity within the top 10 states.
New Mexico and Vermont have notably larger solar capacity shares than the other high ranking states, but even so rely on wind for 73% and 51% of installed renewable capacity respectively, Cleanview data shows.
Outside of the 10 largest states with renewable capacity, solar power plays a greater role in utility-scale capacity.
Nevada, California, Utah, Arizona and North Carolina all have far larger shares of renewable capacity from solar plants than for wind farms, in large part because those areas enjoy more sunshine than northern states.
But recent rapid declines in the cost of utility-scale solar systems have also played a key role in boosting renewable generation capacity in those and other states.
A combination of government tax breaks and manufacturer rebates have encouraged utilities to build out solar capacity faster that any other power source over the past five years, even in areas with relatively less solar generation potential compared to the desert areas of the southwest U.S.
In Iowa, for instance, solar generation capacity jumped by 2,238% from 2019 to 2024, compared to a 30% rise in wind generation capacity over the same period.
Similarly steep jumps in solar capacity have also been recorded in Illinois, Ohio, Wisconsin and Maine over the 2019 to 2024 window, EIA data shows.
WIND WOES?
Wind generation capacity has also registered widespread growth over the past five years, but at a notably slower pace.
At a national level, utility-scale wind generation capacity has grown by 46% since 2019, compared to 171% growth in solar capacity over that period.
A key drag on wind capacity growth has been far longer development schedules for wind farms than for solar parks, in part due to tougher permitting requirements and more fervent local opposition compared to solar projects.
Wind developers have also faced supply chain disruptions to key wind turbine components, which have lifted installation costs and spurred potential customers to opt for alternative sources for capacity growth in recent years.
Solar has been the main alternative to wind in recent years, especially for utilities looking to build up generation capacity within tight deadlines.
Utilities with longer development timelines will likely remain reliant on wind for a large share of clean capacity growth, as wind farms have greater round-the clock generation potential whereas solar parks stop producing at night.
And along with the continued construction of battery capacity, which can store surplus renewable power for later use, utilities look set to continue to expand renewable power's share of total generation capacity to make further progress against energy transition goals.
<The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters.>
Solar & wind share of utility-scale generation capacity by top 25 states https://tmsnrt.rs/3y9AH8U
Solar & wind share of utility-scale generation capacity in states 26-50 https://tmsnrt.rs/3A5luWN
Reporting by Gavin Maguire; Editing by Michael Perry
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