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Editor’s note: This story is part of the Utility Dive Outlook on 2021, a series on the trends that will shape the industry in 2021. For a look at the business trends affecting other industries, see the Dive Outlook on 2021.
At this time last year, few people if anyone could have predicted what 2020 would bring.
That tumultuous year has not yet led to a calmer one, but if January 2020 taught us anything, it s that the first days of a new year may not always be a sign of what s to come. With that being said, Utility Dive spoke to over half a dozen power sector experts who tentatively predict big changes on the horizon in 2021.
Dive Brief:
Wind and solar will represent more than two-thirds of new electric generating capacity to come online in 2021, while battery storage capacity is set to quadruple over the next year, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).
Two-thirds of new solar projects are now built in tandem with energy storage, according to Sam Newell, a principal analyst for The Brattle Group.
At current pace, wind, solar and storage could overtake conventional technologies as the leading source of generation by the early 2030s, according to Wood Mackenzie principal analyst Robert Whaley.
Dive Insight:
Renewable energy is still a ways from becoming the dominant source of energy on the U.S. electric grid, but wind and solar will remain the resources of choice for new development in 2021.