Q1 2021 breaks US record with 3.859 GW of clean power capacity added

US project developers installed about 40% more wind generation in first-quarter 2021 compared with the same period in 2020, which was the strongest year ever for clean power, the American Clean Power Association announced May 13 in its quarterly report.

The US clean energy industry installed a record-breaking 3.859 GW of clean power capacity in Q1 2021, a 10% increase year on year, replacing Q1 2020 as the highest quarter on record, according to the ACP's Clean Power Quarterly Market Report. There is now more than 173 GW of clean power capacity in the country, which is double the amount from five years ago.

"These numbers add up to one word: momentum," ACP CEO Heather Zichal said May 13 in an ACP statement accompanying the report. "We are already exceeding the pace from the strongest previous year ever for clean power. This trend will only grow when more closely aligned with smart policy in Washington."

Cumulative wind capacity increased 2.4% quarter over quarter to 125.422 GW to represent the largest share of clean power capacity, followed by solar capacity at 45.873 GW and battery storage at 1.736 GW, according to the report.

The clean energy transition shows no signs of slowing, with 37.719 GW of clean power capacity under construction across the US in addition to 47.731 GW in advanced development, including about 35 GW of wind and 44 GW of solar, according to ACP. In Q1, projects totaling 10.384 GW started construction, while 14.568 GW entered advanced development.

CLEAN POWER ACTIVITY

In Q1 2021, there were 13 new wind projects, 15 utility-scale solar projects and two energy storage projects that started operations, adding up to 2.5 GW in wind additions, 1.2 GW in solar additions and 100 MW of battery storage additions, according to ACP. Texas led the top five states in new clean power additions once again, with 791 MW, followed by Oklahoma with 555 MW, California with 519 MW, South Dakota with 462 MW and North Dakota with 299 MW.

Top owners of Q1 installations included Duke Energy, EDF Renewables, Avangrid Renewables and Southern Power, according to the report. Duke Energy led with 499 MW in part as a result of starting operations at the 350-MW Frontier II wind farm, which was the largest project to begin commercial operations in the first quarter. EDF delivered three projects with a combined capacity of 456 MW. Avangrid brought two projects online, the Tatanka Ridge and La Joya Wind projects, for a combined capacity of 377 MW, while Southern Power brought online the 301-MW Deuel Harvest North Wind project, the second-largest project to reach commercial operation in the quarter.

Dominion Energy's 12-MW Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project, the nation's first wind project in federal waters, became operational during Q1, while federal regulators released their final assessment of the planned 800-MW Vineyard Wind project, the first utility-scale offshore wind farm in the country.

"The Biden-Harris administration also announced an achievable goal of 30,000 MW of offshore wind in the US by the end of this decade," according to the ACP statement. "These developments during the quarter are helping set the stage for the country's transition to majority renewable energy by the end of this decade."

Solar represents the largest share of capacity in the clean power pipeline at 53%, as Texas represents 18% of the total development pipelines, followed by offshore wind projects in Federal Waters at 11%, California at 10%, Wyoming at 4.3% and New Mexico at 4.2%.