On March 29, for the first time in the history of the United States, the electricity produced thanks to the wind has surpassed that obtained from coal and nuclear power. A record recorded for only one day but which testifies to how the supply of electricity is changing in the main economy of the planet: on the one hand the green light for new drilling to extract hydrocarbons from the subsoil, on the other, very strong investments in renewable sources. The final goal, in one way or another, is to guarantee independence and energy self-sufficiency for the country.
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The news was given by the USA Today newspaper which in turn cited the U.S. Energy AdministrationWind turbines produced 2,017 gigawatts of current on March 29, covering 19% of that day’s requirements and overcoming the slice resulting from nuclear and coal (17% each). In the energy mix of the day, only the gas plants performed better, guaranteeing 31% of demand. The energy authority underlines that on other occasions wind power had surpassed the production of coal and nuclear separately but never both competitors on the same day. The exploit at the end of March was possible thanks to the particular weather conditions from different areas of the United States, from Dakota to Oklahoma to Texas.
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Beyond the episodic fact, the fact remains that the US has been on the move for some time now on the path of green energy without at the same time abandoning the exploitation of fossil resources. In 2020, a Washington Energy Department report states, the US has installed a record capacity of wind power plants, equal to 42% of the new plants. Wind generated 57 percent of Iowa’s electricity and over 30 in Kansas, North and South Dakota and Oklahoma. Offshore turbines off the coast of Rhode Island, Virginia and New York also increased by 24%.
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Overall the renewables (including hydroelectricity) generated in 2021 the 21% of kilowatts made in the USA, surpassing both coal and nuclear power. At the same time, as mentioned, America is not giving up on hydrocarbons: the federal administration has announced that it will begin to authorize new drilling for oil and gas exploration. A move that contradicts what Biden had promised up to now, who, among other things, had set the 2035 the year of the complete liberation of the USA from fossil fuels.
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