Sourcing Renewables  -  February 23, 2022

US Renewables Capacity Surpasses 200 GW, Despite Policy Setbacks

The U.S. surpassed more than 200 GW of total operating utility-scale clean energy capacity in 2021, but policy issues may be holding the industry back from its growth potential, according to a new report.

The American Clean Power Association released its Clean Power Quarterly 2021 Q4 Market Report, which details a 3% decline for clean energy installations in 2021 compared to the record year in 2020 due to over 11.4 GW of projects being pushed to 2022 or 2023. In particular, the solar sector was hindered by trade policies and a lack of regulatory certainty impacting the availability of solar panels, while the wind sector faced policy uncertainty with the expiration of tax credits.

Despite the setbacks, the renewable energy sector installed 27.7 GW of new utility-scale wind, solar and energy capacity in 2021, with 10,520 MW installed in the fourth quarter and $39 billion represented in investments. Individual sector growth included:

• Wind power capacity installations for 2021 totaled 12,747 MW for the year, with 5,409 MW brought online in the fourth quarter.
• The solar sector overall installed 12,364 MW for the year, including 3,937 MW added in the fourth quarter.
• Battery storage installations totaled 2,599 MW in 2021, outpacing 2020 by over 1,500 MW. During the fourth quarter, 1,173 MW of battery storage projects were brought online, the first quarter ever to pass 1 gigawatt of new installations.

Over 1,000 clean energy projects are now under development in the U.S., with 120,171 MW of new capacity in the development pipeline.

The top state for new installations in 2021 was Texas with 7,352 MW, followed by California, Oklahoma, Florida and New Mexico.

Additionally, 2021 was a record year for clean energy procurement, with 28 GW of PPAs signed. Pfizer was the top corporate offtaker in the fourth quarter with 310 MW, followed by Meta and PepsiCo. Meanwhile, utilities made up 35% of announced PPAs during the quarter, with solar energy dominating agreements.

“Surpassing over 200 gigawatts of clean energy is a significant milestone for the United States and shows that we can achieve even more with strong public policy support for the industry,” ACP CEO Heather Zichal said in a statement. “Although the U.S. has reached this incredible achievement, more needs to be done, at a faster pace, to reach the climate goals and targets our country needs to achieve. We urge Congress to take action to create a clean energy future that will help create more good-paying American jobs and combat the climate crisis.”