U.S. coal fired generation capacity saw a significant shift in 2023, marking a continued decline in the industry. Let’s dive into the latest stats and what this means for the future of energy.
Over the last decade, U.S. coal power generating capacity has been shrinking by an average of 4.3% per year.
In 2023, this capacity dropped to 195,000 MW, down 4.6% from the previous year. The decline signals a shift in energy production.
The impact on actual power generation is even larger. In 2023, U.S. coal generation totaled 676 GWh, a 19% decrease compared to 2022. This reflects the changing dynamics of the country’s energy mix.
The decline in coal generation isn’t just about capacity being retired. It’s also a story of existing plants being underutilized. Last year, U.S. aggregate coal capacity factors fell to 38.7%, down from 44.6%.
Thinking ahead, I’m betting coal’s rough ride isn’t over. We might even see record lows, dipping below that 38.0% mark from the 2020 COVID days.
We can probably also expect capacity factor declines to moderate, limiting coal-to-gas switching compared to prior years.
Jeffrey Davies, EnerWrap
