Wind energy production grows in United States

Washington: Wind power is a big deal in many states of the USA these days. According to figures, last year, Iowa generated 31% of its power from wind resources, the most in the country. Several states, including South Dakota (25.5%) and Kansas (23.9%), were also high on the list.

not far behind that number.

Solar generated only about 1% of total electricity in the U.S. last year compared to wind's 4.7% share. Perhaps solar's greater visibility explains why we think it's a bigger contributor than it is.

However, wind is still a fairly regional trend. The Midwest has the most production, along with Northwestern states such as Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming. Texas is another big producer. It got 10% of its power from wind last year, and a lot more than that on some days. In December, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas grid—which covers three-quarters of the state—reported wind met 45% of demand at some points.

At the same time, there's no wind production in the South, outside Texas and Oklahoma, and a tiny amount in Tennessee (in West Virginia, wind accounts for 1.9% of production). In New Jersey and Delaware, there's barely any wind action at all. And Connecticut and North Carolina started putting up wind turbines only very recently.

But where there is wind, it's working well. The windy states generated more electricity from wind than the entire power output of Georgia and Colorado combined. And the U.S. as a whole generated more wind power than any other country, China and Germany included.