Credit: Primoris Renewable Energy
A review by the Sun Day campaign of Data that have just been released by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Ferc) It appears that the combination of solar energy and wind was good for more than 98% of the new American electric generation capacity that were added in January. Only on solar energy was good for more than two-thirds of the new capacity. Moreover, January was the seventeenth month in a row in which Solar was the largest source of new capacity.
Renewable energy sources were 98.4% of the new generating capacity in January:
In the last monthly “Energy Infrastructure Update” report (with data up to and including 31 January 2025), FERC 63 “Units” of Solar Energy of 2,945 MW says in January, together with five units of wind (1,301 MW). Combined, they accounted for 98.4% of all new generating capacity that were added during the month. The balance was supplied by natural gas (60 MW) and oil (11 MW).
Solar was more than two -thirds of the new capacity added in January:
Solar accounted for 68.2% of all new generating capacity that was taken into use in January – more than double the solar capacity added a year earlier (1,176 MW).
Contributing to the recent additions of Solar were twelve projects of 74.5 MW sponsored by Florida Power & Light, as well as the 435 MW Dunns Bridge Solar Project in Indiana. Other important additions were the 245.8 MW Porter, the 240.6 MW 7V and 195.4-MW Angelo Solar projects-all in Texas, as well as the 190-MW Atlanta Farms Solar Project in Ohio.
Solar has now been added the largest source of new generating capacity for seventeen consecutive months: September 2023-Januari 2025.
Zonne-Plus Wind is now almost a quarter of the generating capacity in the field of utility scale; All combined renewable energy sources are almost a third:
New wind was good for the majority of the balance (30.1%) of the capacity additives. In fact, more new wind capacity was added in January 2025 than was reported as added during a month in 2024.
Much of the new wind capacity is due to the 390.4-MW Cedar Springs Wind IV and 330.0 MW forestwell Wind Farm projects, both in Wyoming, as well as the 300.0 MW Prosperity Wind Farm in Illinois and the 201.0 MW Golden Hills Wind Farm extension in Oegon.
The installed capacities of solar energy (10.5%) and wind (11.8%) are now each more than one tenth of the total of the nation. All in all, they are almost a fourth (22.3%) of the total available generation capacity of the US.
In addition, around 30% of the American solar capacity in the form of Small -scale (eg roof) systems that are not reflected in Ferc’s data. The inclusion of that extra solar capacity would bring the share of Solar + Wind to more than a quarter of the total of the nation.
With the absorption of hydropower (7.6%), biomass (1.1%) and geothermal (0.3%), renewable energy sources currently claim a share of 31.3%of the total generating capacity in the field of US Utility scale. If small -scale solar capacity is included, renewable energy sources are now around a third of the total American -generating capacity.
Solar will soon be the second largest source of generating capacity:
Ferc reports that the net “high probability” additives of solar energy between February 2025 and January 2028 a total of 89.033 MW -an amount almost four times the predicted net “high probability” additions for wind (22,312 MW), the second fastest growing source. Ferc also provides net growth for hydropower (1,319 MW) and geothermal (92 MW) but a decrease of 130 MW in biomass capacity.
In summary, the net new additions with high probability “through all renewable energy sources a total of 112,626 MW with solar energy in total in total more than 79% and wind another 20%.
On the other hand, there is no new nuclear capacity in Ferc’s three -year prediction, while coal and oil are expected to contract 24,940 MW and 2,237 MW respectively. Natural gas capacity would only expand 455 MW.
If Ferc’s current “big probability” adds, Solar will be good by 1 February 2028 for almost a sixth (16.2%) of the installed generating capacity of the nation on utility scale. Wind would offer an extra eighth (12.6%) of the total. That would be that way taller than coal (12.4%) and considerably more than nuclear energy or hydropower (both 7.3%).
Assuming that the current growth rates will continue, the installed capacity of solar energy on utility scale will probably surpass the coal and wind within the next two years, so that solar energy will be placed in second place for installed generating capacity-behind only natural gas.
In the meantime, the mix of all renewable energy sources now adds approximately two percentage points to its share in the generating capacity every year. Thus, on 1 February 2028, renewable energy sources would approach 37.4% of the total available installed-scale-generating capacity-speed of that of natural gas (40.2%)-with solar and wind that forms more than three-quarters of the installed capacity of renewable energy.
The combined capacities of all renewable energy sources, including small-scale solar energy, are on schedule to exceed natural gas within three years:
As noted, Ferc’s data do not take into account the capacity of small -scale solar systems. If that is processed within three years, the total American solar capacity (ie small-scale plus utility scale) could surpass 325 GW. In turn, the mix of all renewable energy sources would then exceed more than 40% of the total installed capacity, while the share of natural gas would fall to around 37%.
Moreover, Ferc reports that there may be 220,767 MW of net new sunshine additives in the current three -year pipeline, in addition to 68,409 MW New Wind, 9,833 MW Nieuwe Waterkracht, 201 MW of new geothermal and 39 MW new biomass. Netto new natural gascol capacity, on the other hand, potential in the three -year pipeline is only 18,363 MW. The share of renewable energy sources could therefore still be even greater at the beginning of 2028.
“The Biden ERA closed with record setting SUN TREATMENTS AND A REBOUND in new wind capacity,” said executive director of the Sun Day Campaign Ken Bossong. “Or solar, wind and other renewable energy sources that can continue growing under the policy of the Trump administration can still be seen.”
News item from the Sun Day campaign