Historic First: Wind Energy Accounted for More Electrical Usage in Texas than Coal

For the first time in history, wind energy accounted for more electrical usage in Texas than coal.The Electrical Reliability Council of Texas, which manages about 90% of the electrical flow in the state, released a report earlier this month stating that—during the first half of 2019—wind power generated 22% of the state’s electrical usage while coal only generated 21%.

In addition to Texas being the largest producer and consumer of energy in the US, they have also been the largest consumer of coal. Back in 2003, coal fulfilled 40% of the state’s electrical needs. Wind, on the other hand, only generated 0.8%.

That being said, a new report that was released today by the US Energy Information Administration shows that much has changed over the course of the last 16 years.

Based on data from 2018, Texas now ranks first in US-installed wind capacity and number of turbines. The state generated roughly 24 gigawatts of wind energy, which is three times more than Iowa, the second largest wind power state.

Only 41 US states have installed a minimum of one wind turbine. Of these 41 states, Texas had the largest number of turbines, with more than 13,000. For perspective, California had the second largest amount of turbines with about 7,600.