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WASHINGTON, DC, US, June 7, 2006 (Refocus
Weekly)
The U.S. government has released the tenth in a
series of annual publications on the production and consumption of
renewable energies in that country.
The ‘Renewable Energy Annual 2004' is produced by the Energy
Information Administration and includes four reports which are
accompanied with data and graphics addressing various aspects of the
renewable energy marketplace. The 92-page document examines trends
in renewable energies, solar thermal and solar PV manufacturing
activities, geothermal heat pumps and green pricing / net metering
programs.
The individual reports have been released over recent months, to
cover the use of biomass (wood, wood waste, municipal solid waste,
landfill gas, ethanol), geothermal, wind, solar (thermal and PV) and
conventional hydropower. Hydro pumped storage facilities are
excluded because they usually rely on non-renewable energy sources
for operation.
“Renewable energy consumption increased slightly less than 1%
between 2003 and 2004,” and the total of 6.1 quadrillion Btu (quad)
is 6% share of total U.S. energy consumption. “Total energy
consumption grew faster than did renewables, rising nearly 2% in
2004 to 100.3 quad” with petroleum and natural gas supplying most of
the increase.
“The electric power and industrial sectors continued to dominate
renewable energy in 2004, although the transportation sector had the
greatest year-to-year increase (24%) due to the expanding use of
fuel ethanol to replace MTBE as this oxygenate is phased out in many
states.” Total consumption of green power increased by 3% to 4.3
quad despite a decline in conventional hydroelectricity, while
consumption of renewables for non-electric use (including thermal
output in cogeneration, space heating and motor fuel) decreased by
4% to 1.8 quad, mainly from biomass energy in the residential and
industrial sectors.
Total electricity generation in the U.S. increased by 2% in 2004 to
3,953 billion kWh, while green power output decreased 1% to 359
b-kWh due to the reductions in hydro and biomass output. Wind power
increased by 27% but accounted for only 0.36% of the U.S. total, the
report notes. Preliminary estimates of green power capacity indicate
there was a slight increase in 2004, which “would probably have been
greater but for the expiration of the Production Tax Credit in
December 2003.”
The largest concentration (48%) of green power was in the Pacific
region, which had the highest concentrations of hydro, geothermal,
wind, other biomass and solar power in the country. Growth in
hydropower in California and southeastern states led the increase in
renewable generation in 2003, with the major components of change in
capacity from an expansion of 1,600 MW in wind, partially offset by
a 660 MW decrease in hydroelectric capacity.
Overall, green power was 9% of total U.S. net generation but,
excluding hydropower, the share was 2%. Three northwestern states
(Idaho, Oregon, Washington) generated 70% of their electricity from
renewables, while 35 states had at least 3%. Excluding conventional
hydro, that number dropped to 13 states, led by Maine with 21% and
California with 12%.
By the middle of 2005, 22 states had renewable portfolio standards
or state mandates, with Maryland, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island,
Washington, DC and Montana joining the list, in addition to Hawaii’s
change from a voluntary standard (established in 2001) to an
enforceable standard in 2004.
The Energy Information Administration is the independent statistical
and analytical
agency of the U.S. Department of Energy.
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