Coal down, gas up in USA

• 11 years ago (2013-01-10)
• David Flin

North America 1021 Nuclear 659 Renewables 776

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Data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) shows that total electricity production in the country has risen by just 6 per cent over the last decade. During the same period, electricity generation by natural gas soared by 61 per cent, while power generation from coal fell 17 per cent. The EIA data indicates that generation from natural gas and coal, the two largest fuels for generating electricity, are now roughly equal. Nuclear, in third place, remains flat as no new nuclear plants have been built in the USA since the 1970s. Hydroelectric power increased by 6 per cent during this time, and renewable power – mostly wind generation – grew by 7 per cent.

Cheap and readily available natural gas from shale is helping to bring coal’s dominance as fuel for power generation to an end. Horizontal drilling techniques and hydraulic fracturing technology have been utilised by North American producers to make shale gas economic. As a result, current natural gas consumption in the USA has risen to more than 24 trillion cubic feet in recent years.