Where Pennsylvania Gets Its Electricity
Net generation by source · 12-month average, July 2025 – June 2026.
Generation mix
| Source | Share | Generation |
|---|---|---|
| Natural gas | 57.7% | 140,879 GWh |
| Coal | 7.0% | 17,149 GWh |
| Nuclear | 30.9% | 75,366 GWh |
| Wind | 1.4% | 3,511 GWh |
| Solar | 0.9% | 2,080 GWh |
| Hydro | 1.0% | 2,453 GWh |
| Other | 1.0% | 2,510 GWh |
243.9 TWh generated over the 12 months to June 2026. Shares are of net generation within Pennsylvania, which is not the same as what the state consumes — power crosses state lines.
Counting rooftop solar
EIA reports small-scale solar — mostly rooftop panels on homes and businesses — separately, and leaves it out of the state generation total that the mix above is a share of. Pennsylvania generated 1,691 GWh that way. Counting it on both sides of the ratio takes solar from 0.9% to 1.5%.
How the mix has shifted since 2001
| Source | 2001 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Natural gas | 1.5% | 58.3% | +56.7 pts |
| Coal | 56.9% | 7.1% | −49.8 pts |
| Nuclear | 37.5% | 30.4% | −7.1 pts |
| Wind | 0.0% | 1.5% | +1.4 pts |
| Solar | 0.0% | 0.8% | +0.8 pts |
| Hydro | 0.8% | 1.1% | +0.2 pts |
| Other | 3.2% | 0.9% | −2.3 pts |
Compared with the U.S. and nearby states
| Where | Renewable | Carbon-free | Largest source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pennsylvania | 3.9% | 34.8% | Natural gas 57.7% |
| U.S. average | 25.2% | 42.9% | Natural gas 40.7% |
| New York | 29.1% | 49.7% | Natural gas |
| Maryland | 10.6% | 48.8% | Natural gas |
| Ohio | 8.2% | 19.9% | Natural gas |
| West Virginia | 6.0% | 6.0% | Coal |
| New Jersey | 4.4% | 49.8% | Natural gas |
| Delaware | 4.3% | 4.3% | Natural gas |
Pennsylvania's generation mix in context
Natural gas supplies 57.8% of Pennsylvania's electricity generation, more than half the total. Nuclear power is the second-largest source at 30.7%, making it a substantial part of the generation mix. Together, gas and nuclear make up nearly nine-tenths of the state's supply. Carbon-free sources account for 34.5% of generation, while renewables contribute 3.8%. Solar provides 0.8% of generation from utility-scale facilities, or 1.5% when small-scale rooftop solar is included.
Pennsylvania's renewable share ranks 50th among the 51 states and DC with generation data, 21.1 percentage points below the national average of 24.9%. The national renewable share is 24.9%, compared to Pennsylvania's 3.8%. Across Pennsylvania's six bordering states, all have higher renewable shares. New York leads them at 29.0%, while West Virginia ranks lowest among the neighbours at 5.9%.
The generation mix has shifted substantially since 2001. Coal has fallen from 56.9% in 2001 to 7.1% in 2025, while natural gas has grown from 1.5% to 58.3% over the same span. Nuclear generation has declined from 37.5% in 2001 to 30.4% in 2025. Wind and solar have emerged as sources since 2001, reaching 1.5% and 0.8% in 2025 respectively. Renewables overall have grown from 1.8% in 2001 to 3.9% in 2025.
Written from the EIA figures on this page, covering data through May 2026.
Frequently asked questions
›What percentage of Pennsylvania's electricity comes from renewable energy?
›What percentage of Pennsylvania's power comes from solar?
›Where does Pennsylvania get most of its electricity?
›Does Pennsylvania still burn coal for electricity?
›Is Pennsylvania getting greener?
How this is measured
Figures are net generation reported to the U.S. Energy Information Administration for all sectors — utilities, independent power producers, and industrial and commercial plants that generate their own power. Shares are of the 12 months to June 2026, rather than a single month, because generation is strongly seasonal: solar peaks in summer and hydro with the spring melt, so one month says more about the weather than about the grid.
“Other” is the reported total minus the six named sources, so the shares add to exactly 100%. It holds geothermal, biomass, petroleum, other gases, and pumped storage — the last of which consumes more electricity than it returns, and so can be negative. Geothermal and biomass are renewable, which is why the renewable share above is slightly larger than wind, solar and hydro added together.
This is generation, not consumption. Electricity crosses state lines freely, so a state can generate more than it uses or rely on imports for a large part of its supply; neither shows up here.