New Jersey households use less than the national average (8,902 kWh per year) but pay more for it. Currently, New Jersey rated the 11th-highest residential electricity prices in the nation . Nuclear power used to be the state’s stand-by supplier. However, low natural gas prices are helping to make cheap New Jersey electricity. Not long ago, most electricity had to be imported from neighboring states. New natural gas generators now mean most of the power consumed is made in New Jersey. Only about 10% comes from other states. And renewable technologies are also contributing.
Currently, the power generation mix breaks down into the following:
Nuclear —56.8%
Natural Gas Fired —36.8%
Renewables (mostly solar) —2.4%
Coal Fired —2.4%
Petroleum Fired —0.4%
About half of New Jersey electricity comes from three nuclear plants:
- Oyster Creek (615 megawatt) Lacey Township Commissioned 1969, scheduled to shut down in 2019
- Salem ( 2,370 megawatts ) Lower Alloways Creek Unit I Commissioned 1977; Unit II in 1981
- Hope Creek (1,219 megawatts) Lower Alloways Creek Commissioned 1986
However, in 2015, natural gas generated more electricity in New Jersey than nuclear power did. Not surprising since in older nuclear power plants are increasingly unable to compete economically against newer, cheaper natural gas power plants in competitive energy markets.
In that past, natural gas came to the state through pipelines from Texas. However, abundant natural gas from the fracking operations in the Marcellus Shale fields in neighboring Pennsylvania has not only brought down the price but also brought about the construction of more pipeline capacity. Older natural gas plants have been upgraded while two new plants, the Bayonne Energy Center and the Newark Energy Center, were built within the past 5 years.
New Jersey’s reliance on coal is dwindling, too. The EIA found less than 5% of New Jersey electricity comes from burning coal. Most of the state’s coal-fired generation has been shut down, converted to natural gas, or added dual-firing capability. Coal must be imported from neighboring states via train since the state has no reserves of its own.
New Jersey’s Renewables
Meanwhile, the state’s renewable energy standard requires that 25% of New Jersey’s net energy sales come from renewable sources by 2021. Currently, renewables have only a meager 4% share of the total electricity consumed in the state.
By far, the biggest portion of renewable output comes from solar. Roughly 60% of all solar-generated electricity in the state comes from customer-sited solar panels. This past December, 2016, the state hit the 2,000 megawatt milestone for installed solar, making it the fourth-largest installed capacity of any state in the nation. About 60,000 are residential systems and all but 152 are attached to the grid. In terms of utility-scale generation, solar contributes 377 megawatts and includes the state’s two largest commercial solar farms, Tinton Falls Solar Farm and Pilesgrove Solar Farm, each with capacities of 19.9 megawatts.
Only a small fraction of New Jersey’s renewable electricity is generated by wind New Jersey was the first state to establish a specific requirement for offshore wind,85 mandating 1,100 megawatts by 2021. Offshore wind projects proposed for state and federal waters off the New Jersey coast are still in the planning stages.
New Jersey’s electricity sources are changing for the better and bringing consumers more environmentally friendly options for less money. But you can only find those deal by shopping around for the best supplier at NJ Electricity Ratings.