[samcheng]

A few interesting tidbits from the table in the article:

1) Coal is seeing a dramatic decline! The decrease in electricity generated by coal in 2015 was four times the increase in renewable (wind+solar) electricity generated. In fact, it was more than all other electricity increases combined. This is great for the environment, and not just from a carbon perspective, also from an ash and air pollution perspective. (But unfortunately bad for the areas where coal mining is the sole economic driver)

2) The total amount of electricity generated actually declined significantly (~5%) in 2015. Since we're not seeing a dramatic economic crash, does this point to efficiency gains, weather, or something else? Hopefully, we'll begin realizing more 'negawatts' - the most efficient watt-hour of electricity is the one that is never produced.

3) From a PV perspective, I live in an area attractive to solar power both physically and economically, yet only a handful of my neighbors have installed solar panels. There's still a LOT of room to grow!

[teslaberry]

2) we ARE SEEING A DRAMATIC ECONOMIC CRASH IN THE WEST.

electricity rates in europe have skyrocketed and this is part of the artificial scarcity of electricity , and the suckout of savings that is draining the european economy by rising costs (electricity costs as input to industrial goods) and declining supply ( of money that could have been spent or saved and reinvested in other things other than ridiculous high cash payments for electricity)

[samcheng]

This was a table of electricity generated in the United States; unemployment is at its lowest since 2008, with GDP growth at 2.2% - not shrinking.

It's more likely that the drop in electricity generation was weather related, but I don't have the data on hand to prove that.

[melling]

Fossil fuels account for 67% of the power generation in the US. Coal was replaced with another fossil fuel: natural gas. Solar accounts for less than 1%. So, yes, there's a lot of room for solar to grow.