Renewables are expected to account for nearly 26% of U.S. electricity generation this year, increasing to nearly 28% in 2027, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s latest Short-Term Energy Outlook, released March 10. Renewables accounted for more than 24% of U.S. electricity generation last year.&nbsp;Biomass is expected to account for 1.8% of U.S. renewable electricity generation this year, falling to 1.63% in next year. Biomass accounted for 1.97% of U.S. renewable electricity generation in 2025.&nbsp;Biomass is currently expected to be used to generate 20.2 billion kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity in both 2026 and 2027, down from 20.5 billion kWh last year.&nbsp;The electric power sector had 2.7 gigawatts (GW) of waste biomass capacity in place at the end of 2025. That level of capacity is currently expected to remain unchanged in 2026, but increase to 2.8 GW in 2027. The sector also had 2.2 GW of wood biomass capacity in place at the end of last year, with that level of capacity expected to continue throughout this year and next year.&nbsp;The industrial and commercial sectors had 5.1 GW of wood biomass capacity and 1.3 GW of waste biomass capacity in place at the end of 2025. Those levels of capacity are expected to remain unchanged in 2026 and 2027.&nbsp;The electric power sector consumed 0.15 quadrillion Btu (quad) of waste biomass last year, with consumption expected to expand to 0.154 quad this year before falling to 0.153 quad in 2027. Th sector also consumed 0.168 quad of wood biomass in 2025, with consumption expected to fall to 0.158 quad in 2026 and partially rebound to 0.159 quad in 2027.&nbsp;The industrial sector is expected to consume 0.153 quad of waste biomass in both 2026 and 2027, down from 0.154 quad in 2025. The sector also consumed 1.307 quad of wood biomass in 2025, with consumption expected to expand to 1.402 quad this year and 1.431 quad next year.&nbsp;The commercial sector consumed 0.067 quad of waste biomass and 0.072 quad of wood biomass last year. Those levels of consumption are expected to remain unchanged in 2026 and 2027.&nbsp;The residential sector is expected to consume 0.365 quad of wood biomass this year and next year, unchanged when compared to 2025.&nbsp;Across all sectors, waste biomass consumption was at 0.372 quad last year and is expected to expand to 0.374 quad this year and remain at that level in 2027. Wood biomass consumption was at 1.912 quad in 2025 and is expected to expand to 1.997 quad in 2026 and 2.028 quad in 2027.&nbsp;&nbsp;

2026-03-11 - EIA predicts slight increase in waste biomass power capacity for 2027 (Biomass Magazine)

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Renewables are expected to account for nearly 26% of U.S. electricity generation this year, increasing to nearly 28% in 2027, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s latest Short-Term Energy Outlook, released March 10. 

EIA predicts slight increase in waste biomass power capacity for 2027

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