We see worrying signs that old habits are impeding the energy transition. This trend is becoming transparent in land, air, and ocean transport. But perhaps the persistent high fossil fuel use is our greatest concern. Reuters posted a thought piece on this topic that we considered well worth curating.
High Fossil Fuel Use Rules the Roost
The United States is a world leader in generating the greenhouse gases behind rising surface temperatures. Yet despite this, fossil fuels continue to ‘rule the roost’ in US power generation according to Reuters. This boils down to doing too little, too late, despite very good intentions:
- United States utilities may have grown clean energy generation by 70%.
- However, during this period their fossil-fired capacity shrunk by only 5%.
- But this is paltry compared to a total capacity of over 1,300 gigawatts.
And so, despite all the good intentions forthcoming, high fossil fuel use continues to remain the dominant source of United States grid energy. Although Reuters estimates that the fossil fuel monopoly is now only 58% of total U.S. electricity supply.
Fossil Fuel Generation ‘Hits New Heights’ in 2024
That 58% fossil fuel generation is disappointingly close to 2021’s 60%, as confirmed by Reuters. In fact, the news channel goes on to mention that record demand is bolstering dirty electricity generation. Batteries are waiting in the wings to help. But it is simpler in the short term to increase output from coal and gas, it seems.
Therefore it follows that the United States (and a huge majority of other countries) must radically increase their number of battery storage farms. For these are the key to fully integrating more renewable energy in the generation mix.
Meanwhile, our world gets a little warmer every year, while more severe storms seem to batter our coastlines. The world needs more, but also more powerful storage batteries. We will continue to report on new research in this regard, as scientists search for new ways to curtail high fossil fuel use.
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