Wind generators accounted for more than any other renewable technology including hydroelectricity with 8 percent of operating electric generating capacity in the U.S. in 2016, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said Tuesday.
"Wind turbines have contributed more than one-third of the nearly 200 gigawatts (GW) of utility-scale electricity generating capacity added since 2007," the EIA stated.
The administration highlighted that more than half of U.S. wind capacity is located in five states: Texas, Iowa, Oklahoma, California and Kansas.
"In three states—Iowa, Kansas, and Oklahoma—wind makes up at least 25 percent of in-state utility-scale generating capacity," the EIA statement read.
Texas alone accounts for almost a quarter of total U.S. wind capacity, and electricity generated by these turbines made up 13 percent of Texas's total electricity output in 2016.
According to EIA data, although wind makes up about 8 percent of total U.S. electricity generating capacity, wind generators provided a smaller share, 5 percent, of total U.S. electricity generation in 2016 because wind turbines have relatively low capacity factors.
Capacity factors measure actual output over a certain period as a percentage of the total mechanical ability of the turbine to generate.
Capacity factors average between about 25 percent and 40 percent for wind generators and vary based on seasonal patterns and geographic location.
By Gulsen Cagatay
Anadolu Agency
gulsen.cagatay@aa.com.tr
