nation's power grid to expand in several directions, says report

Nearly 24 gigawatts of new energy capacity is expected to be added to the U.S. electric power sector before the end of 2019.
So says a report just issued by the Energy Information Administration, which also forecasts the percentage of planned energy facility retirements, noting that 53 percent of those facilities will be coal-based, followed by gas plants at 27 percent, and nuclear plants at 18 percent.
Of the new utility-scale additions, some 46 percent will be comprised of wind, while natural gas will account for 34 percent and photovoltaics will make up 18 percent.
The EIA report, Preliminary Monthly Electric Generator Inventory, predicts that Texas will see more than 50 percent of all planned wind capacity projects in the coming year.
Natural gas capacity will experience the most growth in Pennsylvania, Florida, and Louisiana, while almost 50 percent of the 4.3 gigawatts of utility-scale electro power photovoltaic additions will occur in Texas, California, and North Carolina.
New wind projects in 2019 will overwhelmingly be in the Great Plains states from North Dakota heading south to Nebraska, Oklahoma, and northern Texas.
Currently, notes the EIA, some 35 percent of electricity generation in the country comes from natural gas, a figure that is up from 32 percent in 2017.
Electricity generation from coal is on the decline, dropping from 30 percent in 2017 to an anticipated 26 percent this year.
Meanwhile, nuclear-based power generation will remain unchanged at 19 percent.
The Energy Information Administration operates under the auspices of the Federal Statistical System, and is tasked with collecting and analyzing energy trends and information.

By Garry Boulard

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