Energy in Brief - What everyone should know about energy
Release Date: December 8, 2009
wind turbine

How much renewable energy do we use?

Americans used renewable energy sources — water (hydroelectric), geothermal, wind, sun (solar), and biomass — to meet about 7% of our total energy needs in 2008.
Did You Know?

Wind-generated electricity increased by 30% between 2006 and 2007 and by 51% between 2007 and 2008, more than any other renewable source of generation in both years. These increases were due primarily to newly-constructed wind power plants.

Hydroelectric generation decreased by 14% between 2006 and 2007. However, between 2007 and 2008, hydroelectric generation increased slightly (by 0.2%). These changes were primarily due to variation in the amounts of rainfall and snowfall occurring in watersheds where major hydroelectric dams are located.

Pie chart showing: Total=101.605 quadrillion BTU; Petroleum 40%; Natural Gas 23%; Coal 22%; Nuclear Energy 8%; Renewable Energy 7%. Total Renewable Energy=6.830 quadrillion BTU; Biomass 53%; Hydroelectric 36%; Geothermal 5%; Wind 5%; Solar 1%. Note: Sum of components may not equal 100 percent due to independent rounding. Source: EIA, Annual Energy Review 2008, Table 1.3 Primary Energy Consumption (June 2009).

Renewable energy consumption increased by about 7% between 2007 and 2008, contributing about 7% of the Nation’s total energy demand, and 9% of total U.S. electricity generation in 2008.1

Most Renewable Energy Goes to Producing Electricity

Electricity producers2 consumed 51% of total U.S. renewable energy in 2008 for producing electricity.3 About 20% of renewable energy used was biomass consumed for industrial applications (principally paper-making) by facilities producing only heat and steam. Biomass is also used for transportation fuels (ethanol and biodiesel) and to provide residential and commercial space heating. The largest share of the renewable-generated electricity in 2008 came from hydroelectric energy (67%), followed by biomass (15%), wind (14%), geothermal (4%), and solar (0.2%).4 Wind-generated electricity increased by 51% in 2008 over 2007, more than any other energy source. Its growth rate was followed by solar, which increased by 38% in 2008 over 2007.5

The United States Is Second in Renewable Electricity Production

China leads the world in total renewable energy consumption for electricity production due to its recent massive additions to hydroelectric production, followed closely by the United States, Brazil, and Canada. However, the United States consumes the most non-hydro renewable energy for the production of electricity. The United States consumes twice as much non-hydro renewable energy for electricity production as Germany and more than three times as much as Spain.6

The Share of Renewable-Generated Electricity in the United States Is Expected to Grow

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) projects that renewable-generated electricity will account for almost 16% of total U.S. electricity generation in 2030.7 This growth (from 9% in 2007 to almost 16% in 2030) is driven mainly by the extension of Federal tax credits and the new loan guarantee program in the February 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).

EIA projects renewable energy’s share of total worldwide electricity generation will increase from 19% of generation in 2006 to 21% in 2030,8 and will be the second largest source of energy for electricity production after coal.

Why We Don’t Use More Renewable Energy?

In general, most renewable energy power plants have less environmental impact than fossil and nuclear power plants, but there are two main reasons why we don't use more renewable energy.

  1. Renewable Energy Technologies Are Capital-Intensive: Renewable energy power plants are generally more expensive to build and to operate than coal and natural gas plants. Recently, however, some wind-generating plants have proven to be economically feasible in areas with good wind resources, compared with other conventional technologies, when coupled with the Renewable Electricity Production Tax Credit (described below).

  2. Renewable Resources Are Often Geographically Remote: The best renewable resources are often available only in remote areas, so building transmission lines to deliver power to large metropolitan areas is expensive.

Policies Aim to Increase the Use of Renewable Energy

Three kinds of policies to increase the use of renewable energy are:

  1. Tax credits: The Renewable Electricity Production Tax Credit, a Federal incentive, has encouraged a quadrupling of wind energy capacity over the past few years. EIA’s projection in April 2009 assumed these credits will expire at the end of 2009 for wind and end of 2010 for other eligible renewables, according to legislation in effect at the time of the forecast. Extension of the credit would increase the projected growth in renewable generation.

  2. Targets: Many States have Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS), which require electricity providers to generate or acquire a percentage of generation from renewable sources.9 However, many RPS programs have “escape clauses” if renewable generation exceeds a cost threshold. Some States have delayed compliance and others lack enforcement procedures. As a result, some States may not meet their RPS goals. However, EIA's forecast assumes that nearly all States will meet RPS mandates.10

  3. Markets: A number of States have built Renewable Energy Certificates/Credits (RECs) into their Renewable Portfolio Standards.11 This allows electricity providers to sell renewable energy certificates/credits and use their proceeds for renewable projects. Some States have made REC markets mandatory, requiring electricity providers to produce or acquire renewable generation to reduce reliance on fossil fuels to generate electricity.

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1 Energy Information Administration, Annual Energy Review 2008, Table 1.3 (June 2009).
2 Electrical utilities, independent power producers, and combined heat and power plants.
3 Energy Information Administration, Annual Energy Review 2008, Tables 10.1 and 10.2a, b, and c (June 2009).
4 Energy Information Administration, Annual Energy Review 2008, Table 8.2a (June 2009).
5 Energy Information Administration, Annual Energy Review 2008, Table 8.2a (June 2009).
6 Energy Information Administration, International Energy Statistics, Data for 2008 (Accessed December, 2009).
7 Energy Information Administration, Annual Energy Outlook 2009; Updated Reference Case, Table 8 (2009).
8 Energy Information Administration, International Energy Outlook 2009, Figure 51 (June 2009).
9 Energy Information Administration, "What are renewable portfolio standards (RPS) and how do they affect generation of electricity from renewable sources?" (December 2009).
10 Energy Information Administration, Annual Energy Outlook 2009, Electricity Projections (Reference Case) (March 2009).
11 Energy Information Administration, "What are renewable portfolio standards (RPS) and how do they affect generation of electricity from renewable sources?" (December 2009).