Solar Power Boost in the US, Renewable Energy Dependence Soars

Photo by WSJ (DOUGLAS R. CLIFFORD / TAMPA BAY TIMES / ZUMA PRESS)

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] Due to U.S. President Joe Biden's 'solar drive,' the amount of solar power generation in the United States is expected to surpass wind power generation for the first time next year.

On the 7th (local time), the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) stated this in its Short-Term Energy Outlook report published that day. It also forecasted that next year, new power capacity in the U.S. will increase by about 17 GW from solar power and about 6 GW from wind power.

The reliance on renewable energy generation such as solar and wind in the U.S. is expected to reach 15% of the total, up 4 percentage points from 11% last year.

President Biden has been driving policies to expand renewable energy, including announcing plans to install an additional 500 million solar panels, which is about 150% of the cumulative installed capacity, during his term.

At the climate summit held in April, President Biden pledged to reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by half compared to 2005 levels by 2030 and to replace 50% of the total energy share in the U.S. with eco-friendly energy by 2050.

The U.S., which halted new oil and gas drilling projects, saw renewable energy surpass coal in power production share for the first time in 2019.

The EIA predicts that by 2050, the U.S. reliance on renewable energy will increase to 42%, with solar power accounting for 46% of that share.

Meanwhile, this year, U.S. crude oil production is expected to decrease by 210,000 barrels per day to 11 million barrels, a smaller reduction compared to the previous forecast of a 230,000 barrel decrease.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.