The addition of solar capacity on a utility scale is set to set a new record by adding 15.4 GW of capacity to the US grid in 2021, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) announced today.
Solar leads the 2021 package with 39% of the new US electricity generation capacity. It is followed by wind (31%, or 12.2 GW), natural gas (16% or 6.6 GW), battery storage (11% or 4.3 GW), nuclear (3% or 1.1 GW) and Others, at 0.2 GW.
Solar
The 15.4 GW of solar energy expected for 2021 will exceed the increase of almost 12 GW in 2020, based on reported additions through October (6 GW) and additions scheduled for the last two months of 2020 (5.7 GW).
Four states will host more than half of the new utility-scale photovoltaic solar capacity: Texas (28%), Nevada (9%), California (9%) and North Carolina (7%).
Like Electrek previously reported, Texas will host the largest solar energy project in the U.S., the Samson Solar Energy Center, which will be built in five phases over the next three years, with each phase starting operations after completion in 2023.
Wind
Another 12.2 GW of wind capacity is scheduled to start operating in 2021. Last year, 21 GW of wind power went into operation.
Texas and Oklahoma account for more than half of the additions to 2021 wind capacity. The 12 MW Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) pilot project, located 27 miles off the coast of Virginia Beach, is also scheduled to begin commercial operation early 2021.
Natural gas
Natural gas is a dirty fossil fuel. Planned natural gas capacity additions are reported at 6.6 GW, mainly in Texas, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
Battery storage
The EIA expects battery storage capacity on a utility scale to be more than quadrupled; The 4.3 GW battery power capacity additions are expected to come on stream in late 2021. This is because battery storage goes hand in hand with green energy.
The world’s largest solar battery (409 MW) is under construction at the Manatee Solar Energy Center in Florida; the battery is scheduled to be operational by the end of 2021.
In the annual survey, the EIA asks respondents to provide planned dates for generators to go online in the next five years. The monthly survey tracks the status of generators coming on stream next year based on reported service dates.
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