This year is likely to the be first in which natural gas-fired energy generation will exceed coal-fired generation in the United States on an annual basis, according to data released Wednesday by the Energy Information Administration. Gas surpassed coal on a monthly basis in April 2015 and by the year’s end the two were essentially tied for annual generation totals, each providing roughly one-third of the nation’s energy.
Low natural gas prices have contributed heavily to the shift, according to an EIA release. “Environmental regulations affecting power plants have played a secondary role in driving coal’s declining generation share over the past decade, although plant owners in some states have made investments to shift generation toward natural gas at least partly for environmental reasons,” the release says.
