Despite the COVID-19 pandemic causing record job losses for the renewable energy industry, slowing construction activity and threatening developers’ access to capital, the United States saw strong capacity additions for wind and solar power during 2020.
However, questions remain about the long-term effects the pandemic will have on projects.
An analysis by S&P Global Market Intelligence shows a pipeline of 172.5 gigawatt (GW) of capacity for wind and solar projects through 2024.
Of that, 75.7GW are wind power projects while 96.8GW are solar power projects, the data shows.
While some of the projects may not cross the finish line, especially those in early development phases, wind and solar projects totalling 30.7GW of capacity are now under construction.
Meanwhile, 18.2GW of projects are in advanced development, 109.3GW are in early development, and developers announced 14.1GW of new projects.
More than 5.4GW of wind projects under construction are scheduled for completion in 2021, while 4.3GW of solar projects under construction are scheduled for completion in 2021, the data shows.
Most of the capacity in the pipeline for wind power projects, 40.6GW, is in early development, according to the data.
Meanwhile, wind power projects totalling 18.7GW are under construction, 10.1GW are in advanced development, and developers have announced 6.1GW of capacity for new projects.
Like wind power, most of the capacity in the solar power pipeline, 68.6GW, through 2024 is in early development, according to the data.
Projects totalling 11.9GW of solar power capacity are under construction, 8.1GW are in advanced development, and developers have announced 8.0GW of new solar projects, according to the data.
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