Which are the top U.S. states for renewable power capacity? Energy transition columnist Gavin Maguire runs the numbers and gives the rankings. California and Texas often grab the headlines, but several other states have developed far larger shares of renewable capacity within their utility-scale generation systems. Here’s the lowdown and, as ever with Gavin, you get a couple of great charts as well.
Wind power dominates generation capacity in the top ten U.S. renewable energy states but what happens when the wind doesn’t blow? National wind power slumped to a 33-month low on Monday, forcing power generators to crank up natural-gas fired plants. Gas, as Scott Disavino explains, is still what keeps the lights and the air-conditioners on despite massive investment in renewables capacity.
China’s coal-fired power plants generated 59.6% of the country’s electricity in the first half of 2024, the first time on record that coal has accounted for less than 60% of the power mix in the period. Gavin Maguire investigates the tectonic shifts playing out in the world’s largest carbon emitter.
However, even as China’s renewables capacity grows, the country’s appetite for coal imports is undiminished. Indeed, the country imported record volumes of thermal coal in the first half of the year. China’s import appetite may be about to wane, though, according to Reuters Asia commodities columnist Clyde Russell.
Venezuela hosts the world’s eighth largest natural gas reserves but came in a lowly 25st place in the global production rankings last year. The country flares off more unprocessed gas from its oil wells than it supplies commercially. Can Venezuela’s gas potential be unleashed? The question lies at the heart of the July 28 presidential elections. Reuters reporters Marianna Parraga, Deisy Buitrago and Mircely Guanipa take a deep dive behind the headlines.
