Where Wyoming Gets Its Electricity
Net generation by source · 12-month average, September 2025 – August 2026.
Generation mix
| Source | Share | Generation |
|---|---|---|
| Natural gas | 12.7% | 5,678 GWh |
| Coal | 51.7% | 23,019 GWh |
| Nuclear | 0.0% | 0 GWh |
| Wind | 31.0% | 13,793 GWh |
| Solar | 1.1% | 494 GWh |
| Hydro | 2.3% | 1,027 GWh |
| Other | 1.2% | 544 GWh |
44.6 TWh generated over the 12 months to August 2026. Shares are of net generation within Wyoming, 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. Wyoming generated 45 GWh that way. Counting it on both sides of the ratio takes solar from 1.1% to 1.2%.
How the mix has shifted since 2001
| Source | 2001 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Natural gas | 1.3% | 9.9% | +8.6 pts |
| Coal | 95.6% | 58.5% | −37.1 pts |
| Nuclear | 0.0% | 0.0% | — |
| Wind | 0.8% | 27.1% | +26.3 pts |
| Solar | 0.0% | 1.1% | +1.1 pts |
| Hydro | 2.0% | 2.1% | +0.2 pts |
| Other | 0.3% | 1.3% | +0.9 pts |
Compared with the U.S. and nearby states
Wyoming's generation mix in context
Coal generated 51.7% of Wyoming's electricity in the twelve months from September 2025 to August 2026, making it the largest source by far. Wind supplied 31%, while natural gas contributed 12.7%. Renewable sources — wind, solar, hydro, and the renewables within other — accounted for 34.4% of generation, placing Wyoming 19th among the 50 states and DC. Carbon-free generation, which adds nuclear to that renewable share, also totaled 34.4%, since Wyoming generates no nuclear power. Utility-scale solar alone supplied 1.1% of electricity; including rooftop solar, the share rises to 1.2%.
Wyoming's generation mix has shifted dramatically since 2001. Coal's share fell from 95.6% in 2001 to 58.5% in 2025, while wind surged from 0.8% to 27.1% over the same span. Renewables as a whole grew from 2.8% in 2001 to 30.3% in 2025. Natural gas rose from 1.3% to 9.9%, and solar emerged from nothing to reach 1.1% in 2025.
The state's renewable share of 34.4% exceeds the national figure of 25.4% by nine percentage points. However, coal dominates Wyoming's mix far more than it does nationally — the state generates coal at 51.7% compared with 15.4% nationwide, while natural gas supplies 12.7% in Wyoming against 40.9% nationally. Among its six bordering states, four — South Dakota, Idaho, Montana, and Colorado — have higher renewable shares. Nebraska and Utah both generate renewables at lower rates than Wyoming, with Nebraska at 32.2% and Utah at 23%.
Written from the EIA figures on this page, covering data through August 2026.
Frequently asked questions
›What percentage of Wyoming's electricity comes from renewable energy?
›What percentage of Wyoming's power comes from solar?
›Where does Wyoming get most of its electricity?
›Does Wyoming still burn coal for electricity?
›Is Wyoming 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 August 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.