The Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP) emissions reported by the power plants sector decreased significantly from 2011 to 2021, from 2,222 million metric tons (MMT) CO2e in 2011 to 1,589 MMT CO2e in 2021, a decrease of 28.5%. This overall decrease in emissions resulted from longer-term trends related to changes in the composition of fuels used in electricity generation and an increase in renewable electricity generation. Reported emissions for 2021 increased by 6.3% from 2020. The annual increase in emissions observed in 2021 resulted from the increased demand for electricity generation during 2021 as the economy recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic.
From 2011 through 2021, national net generation of electricity remained consistent with an increase of 0.4%, including a 2.6% increase between 2020 and 2021. [1, 2] This increase in net generation follows a decrease of 2.9% between 2019 and 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic which began in 2020. Although the national net generation of electricity has remained consistent from 2011 to 2021, the GHG emissions per unit of electricity generation decreased from 541.9 to 386.1 MT CO2e per thousand megawatt-hours, a 29% drop. Several factors contributed to this reduction in emissions per unit of electricity generated, including the increased use of renewable energy sources and more electric power generation from natural gas combustion. [3] In 2011, 42.3% of U.S. electricity was generated from coal and 24.7% from natural gas; but by 2021, 21.8% of electricity was generated from coal and 38.3% from natural gas. Over the same timeframe, electricity generated from renewable sources increased from 12.5% to 20.1%. [1, 2] Electricity generated from renewable energy results in no GHG emissions from power plants; and generation from natural gas, particularly in more efficient combined-cycle generators, produces lower greenhouse gas emissions per unit of electricity generated than generation from coal. [4]
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[1] U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly Table 1.1. Net Generation by Energy Source: Total (All Sectors), 2011- June 2021 (accessed September 17, 2021) at: https://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.php?t=epmt_1_01
[2] U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly Table 1.1. Net Generation by Energy Source: Total (All Sectors), 2012- June 2022 (accessed September 19, 2022) at: https://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.php?t=epmt_1_01
[3] Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2020. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. April 2022. EPA 430-R-22-003. Available at: https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/inventory-us-greenhouse-gas-emissions-and-sinks-1990-2020
[4] U.S. Department of Energy, Environment Baseline, Volume 1: Greenhouse Gas Emissions from the U.S. Power Sector. June 2016. Available at: https://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2017/01/f34/Environment Baseline Vol. 1--Greenhouse Gas Emissions from the U.S. Power Sector.pdf
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