According to the United States Energy Information Administration (EIA), nearly all the power plants that retired over the 2008-2017 period were powered by fossil fuels such as coal or gas and the trend is likely to continue until 2020. Out of the total phased out capacity, coal-fired plants accounted for 47%, while gas steam turbines amounted to 26%.
The share of combustion turbines and combined cycle and oil-fired facilities are marginal. The retirement of coal-fired capacities disproportionally affected the East Coast and Midwest states, while Texas is expected to have more than 5.5 GW of coal-fired power plant retirements in 2018.
These retirements are influenced by changes in regional electricity consumption, federal or state policies affecting plant operation, and state policies requiring or encouraging renewable development. Some coal- and gas-fired units may also retire to be replaced with newer, more efficient, and operationally flexible technologies such as CCGT.
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