Five countries account for more than two-thirds of the world’s total nuclear electricity generation capacity. The United States has the most capacity, followed by France, China, Russia, and South Korea, based on International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) data as of June 2025. Globally, 416 nuclear power reactors are operating in 31 countries, … [continued]
In 2024, the United States consumed about 94 quadrillion British thermal units (quads) of energy, a 1% increase from 2023, according to our Monthly Energy Review. Fossil fuels—petroleum, natural gas, and coal—accounted for 82% of total U.S. energy consumption in 2024. Nonfossil fuel energy—from renewables and nuclear energy—accounted for the other … [continued]
In 2023, U.S. nuclear generators used 32 million pounds of imported uranium concentrate (U3O8) and only 0.05 million pounds of domestically produced U3O8. Imports accounted for 99% of the U3O8 they used in 2023 to make nuclear fuel. Foreign producers predominantly supply the U.S. front-end nuclear fuel cycle, but federal policies have been implemented … [continued]
In our latest Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO), we expect that U.S. renewable capacity additions—especially solar—will continue to drive the growth of U.S. power generation over the next two years. We expect U.S. utilities and independent power producers will add 26 gigawatts (GW) of solar capacity to the U.S. electric power sector in … [continued]
Georgia Power announced this week that the 1,114-megawatt (MW) Unit 4 nuclear power reactor at Plant Vogtle near Waynesboro, Georgia, entered into commercial operation after connecting to the power grid in March 2024. The commercial start of Unit 4 completes the 11-year expansion project at Plant Vogtle. No nuclear reactors are under construction … [continued]
This Black History Month, we honor those who have shaped our energy past, present, and future for the better. We are beyond thankful for their groundbreaking contributions and advancements that have been foundational in the work we continue to support at the Department of Energy. Here are some of their … [continued]
Operators have scheduled 14.9 gigawatts (GW) of electric generating capacity to retire in the United States during 2022, according to our latest inventory of electric generators. The majority of the scheduled retirements are coal-fired power plants (85%), followed by natural gas (8%) and nuclear (5%). Coal. After substantial retirements of U.S. … [continued]
In 2020, renewable energy sources (including wind, hydroelectric, solar, biomass, and geothermal energy) generated a record 834 billion kilowatthours (kWh) of electricity, or about 21% of all the electricity generated in the United States. Only natural gas (1,617 billion kWh) produced more electricity than renewables in the United States in 2020. Renewables surpassed both nuclear (790 … [continued]
The US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) expects that slightly more than 50% of new US power capacity in the next 3 years will come from solar power — and that’s just considering large-scale solar power projects, not small-scale/rooftop solar power installations. According to FERC’s January 2021 to December 2023 … [continued]
In 2019, U.S. annual energy consumption from renewable sources exceeded coal consumption for the first time since before 1885, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) Monthly Energy Review. This outcome mainly reflects the continued decline in the amount of coal used for electricity generation over the past decade as well as growth in renewable energy, mostly from wind and solar.
