FERC reveals fall in new power plants

• 12 years ago (2012-10-19)
• Junior Isles

North America 1021 Renewables 776

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US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has revealed that fewer new power plants entered service in the first nine months of 2012 than during the same period in 2011, despite generators building more wind farms and solar facilities in 2012.

FERC’s report shows that generating companies completed about 12 500 MW of capacity between January and September in 2012, compared with over 15 400 MW during the previous year.

Of the units finished so far in 2012, FERC noted that about 4600 MW were natural gas plants, 4100 MW were wind farms, 2300 MW were coal plants and roughly 900 MW were solar powered.

That compares with about 9200 MW of gas plants, 3200 MW of wind, 1900 MW of coal and about 500 MW of solar for 2011.

FERC pointed to September as a particularly busy month for US renewables with the 50 MW Phase 5 of MidAmerican Renewables' Agua Caliente solar project going online, the 140 MW Phase 1 of EDF Group's Pacific wind farm in California coming online, and the first 80 MW phase of KODE Novus' wind farm in Oklahoma also came online.