Electricity-generating wind turbines are seen on a wind farm in the San Gorgonio Pass area on Earth... [+] Day, April 22, 2016, near Palm Springs, California. Photo credit DAVID MCNEW/AFP/Getty Images. The history of power production through the early part of the 21st century was very much a tale of nonrenewable energy resources. Power was produced primarily by coal, natural gas, and nuclear energy at large power plants at central locations and distributed to customers via the electrical grid. But a revolution is underway in the world's power markets. The Rise of Renewables The world's energy mix has evolved substantially over the past 20 years. Since 1997, global cumulative installed solar photovoltaic (PV) and wind power have climbed from less than 8 GW to nearly 800 GW, according to the BP Statistical Review of World Energy. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), renewables were responsible for almost 165 GW of new global power capacity in 2016—nearly two-thirds of the global total. The U.S. has been a leader in this transition. According to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (FERC) "Energy Infrastructure Update" (EIU), renewable power sources accounted for half (49.9%) of the 24.6 gigawatts (GW) of new U.S. electrical generating capacity placed into service in 2017. Nearly all of the rest, 48.7%, was new natural gas capacity. At the end of 2017, all renewables (including hydropower) accounted for more 20% of the nation's installed generating capacity -- up from 15.4% in 2012. Renewables accounted for 17.6% of total electrical generation in 2017, compared to 15.3% in 2016. The discrepancy between the 20% installed capacity and 17.6% of generation is attributable to the intermittency of renewable sources. The Revolution Accelerates But the first quarter of this year resulted in almost exclusively new renewable capacity. FERC's most recent EIU showed that in the first three months of this year, renewables comprised nearly 95% of new power-generating capacity. New power capacity installed in Q1 2018 Wind and solar were responsible for nearly all the new capacity, with new wind capacity slightly ahead of solar. FERC expects these trends to continue for the foreseeable future. The non-profit SUN DAY Campaign analyzed FERC data and estimated that "net additions to generating capacity by utility-scale wind and solar in the U.S. could total 116 GW by December 2020 — effectively doubling their current installed capacity of 115.5 GW." The recent past and foreseeable future in the power industry are all about this shift in the direction of renewable energy sources.
The overwhelming majority of new power - generating capacity in the country is being provided by renewable energy , according to new government figures . In the first quarter of 2018 , renewables accounted for nearly 95 % of such installed capacity across the country , with wind power leading the field , ahead of solar . The pace of such installations has increased in recent years and is expected to continue , with some sources predicting the current renewable capacity of 115.5 GW could double by the end of 2020 .