Headlines: 50% of Added Energy Capacity in the U.S. Coming from Renewables Says Report

August 23, 2013, Ernst & Young has published a study that shows that the growth in energy capacity in the U.S. is increasingly coming from renewables. In 2012 they accounted for 49% of added capacity with $55.3 billion spent. The total dollars invested in renewables dropped from 2011 when spending amounted to $65.4 billion. But that doesn’t mean less total capacity investment. Instead it just reflects the falling cost of renewable projects as they become mainstream. The drop in total new investment also reflects the declining cost of solar panels.

Wind led in new capacity increasing by 13,124 Megawatts in 2012, while solar grew by 3,313 Megawatts with California becoming the first U.S. state to do new installations of more than 1,000 Megawatts in a single year.