As U.S. Temperatures Spike, So Does The Need For Natural Gas First the overwhelming numbers: natural gas accounts for 45% of our power generation capacity, 40% of actual power generation, and 33% of energy supply.
In future, however, the lean on natural gas could be much higher than some want you to think, especially since gas is expected to remain relatively low-cost.
The reality is that coal and nuclear plants are being retired (the former in droves over the past 12 years), so we have been increasingly going down the “only gas, only renewables” path for America’s electricity.
The problem is that wind and solar are naturally intermittent, unavailable most of the time and usually backed up by gas generation itself.
Not to mention that these renewables are “location-specific,” where their prospects to deliver are contingent on geography (i.e., windy Texas dominates U.S. wind power and sunny California dominates U.S. solar power).
This is making gas even more vital in providing the reliable electricity that we require in our goal for more “electrification” to fight climate change – more power utilized in transport, buildings, industry, etc.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/judeclemente/2021/07/01/as-us-temperatures-spike-so-does-the-need-for-natural-gas/?sh=7169f4fa2b6b