Where Vermont Gets Its Electricity
Net generation by source · 12-month average, July 2025 – June 2026.
Generation mix
| Source | Share | Generation |
|---|---|---|
| Natural gas | 0.1% | 1 GWh |
| Coal | 0.0% | 0 GWh |
| Nuclear | 0.0% | 0 GWh |
| Wind | 15.9% | 344 GWh |
| Solar | 11.1% | 240 GWh |
| Hydro | 53.0% | 1,143 GWh |
| Other | 19.9% | 429 GWh |
2.2 TWh generated over the 12 months to June 2026. Shares are of net generation within Vermont, 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. Vermont generated 359 GWh that way. Counting it on both sides of the ratio takes solar from 11.1% to 23.8%.
How the mix has shifted since 2001
| Source | 2001 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Natural gas | 0.2% | 0.0% | −0.2 pts |
| Coal | 0.0% | 0.0% | — |
| Nuclear | 76.1% | 0.0% | −76.1 pts |
| Wind | 0.2% | 17.0% | +16.8 pts |
| Solar | 0.0% | 10.5% | +10.5 pts |
| Hydro | 16.1% | 53.4% | +37.3 pts |
| Other | 7.3% | 19.1% | +11.8 pts |
Compared with the U.S. and nearby states
| Where | Renewable | Carbon-free | Largest source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vermont | 98.5% | 98.5% | Hydro 53.0% |
| U.S. average | 25.2% | 42.9% | Natural gas 40.7% |
| New York | 29.1% | 49.7% | Natural gas |
| Massachusetts | 22.3% | 22.3% | Natural gas |
| New Hampshire | 13.5% | 66.4% | Nuclear |
Vermont's generation mix in context
Hydroelectric generation supplied 53% of Vermont's electricity in the twelve months since June 2025, making it by far the largest source. The state generated 2.2 TWh over that period. Wind provided 16%, while solar made up 10.9% on a utility-scale basis alone; counting rooftop installations on both sides of the ratio raises the solar share to 22.6%. Renewables together accounted for 98.5% of generation, the highest share among the 51 states and DC with generation data. Carbon-free sources matched the renewable figure at 98.5%, while fossil fuels contributed just 0.1%.
The generation mix has transformed dramatically since 2001. Nuclear, which dominated with 76.1% that year, fell to 0% by 2025. Hydro rose from 16.1% in 2001 to 53.4% in 2025, while wind grew from a negligible 0.2% to 17% and solar emerged from nothing to reach 10.5%. Gas declined from 0.2% to 0%. In total, renewables grew from 23.1% in 2001 to 99.1% in 2025, a gain of 76 percentage points.
Neighbouring states depend far more heavily on gas and other fossil fuels. New York, with 29% renewable generation, and Massachusetts, at 21.2%, both run primarily on natural gas. New Hampshire generates the majority of its electricity from nuclear power and has a renewable share of just 13.6%. Nationally, natural gas is the largest source at 40.8%, coal supplies 15.8%, and renewables account for only 24.9%—leaving Vermont's clean energy mix 73.6 percentage points above the national renewable average.
Written from the EIA figures on this page, covering data through May 2026.
Frequently asked questions
›What percentage of Vermont's electricity comes from renewable energy?
›What percentage of Vermont's power comes from solar?
›Where does Vermont get most of its electricity?
›Does Vermont still burn coal for electricity?
›Is Vermont 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.