In Fiscal Year (FY) 2021, federal agencies used more than 5.2 million megawatt-hours (MWh) of renewable electric energy—10% of total FY 2021 federal electricity use. The Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) helps agencies meet statutory renewable electricity requirements and accomplish their missions through investment in lasting and reliable energy-generation projects and purchases.

Total FY 2021 Renewable Electricity Use

FY21 Renewable Electricity Use: 5,259,595 MWh; FY21 Total Electricity Use: 52,648,736 MWh

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Federal agencies used 10% renewable electricity in FY 2021:

  • 5,259,595 MWh renewable electricity out of 52,648,736 MWh total electricity used.

Federal energy performance data is from FEMP's Comprehensive Annual Energy Data and Sustainability Performance website. 

Read more about the federal government's progress toward efficiency requirements.

FY 2021 Renewable Electricity Technologies

Federal agencies used 5.2 million MWh of renewable electricity generated by the following technologies.

Chart shows which renewable technologies were used to generate the most electricity at federal facilities.

Review the FY 2021 Renewable Technology Data

Renewable Energy Technology MWh Percentage of 5.2 million MWh
Wind 2,011,447 38.2%
Solar Photovoltaic 1,656,936 31.5%
Biomass (wood and wood residuals) 562,220 10.7%
Incremental Hydropower 326,268 6.2%
Other Sources 282,282 5.4%
Biogas (captured methane) 245,200 4.7%
Geothermal 74,342 1.4%
Agricultural Byproducts and Biodiesel (100%) 71,742 1.3%
Municipal Solid Waste 19,474 0.4%
Concentrating Solar Power 9,683 0.2%
Total: 5,259,595 100%

 

FY 2021 Renewable Electricity Use by Agency

The following federal agencies were the top users of renewable electricity in FY 2021.

Chart shows electricity usage by federal agencies.

Review the FY 2021 Federal Agency Data

Agency Abbreviation Renewable Electric Energy Used (MWh)
U.S. Department of Defense DOD 1,915,421
U.S. Department of Energy DOE 969,177
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs VA 722,475
U.S. General Services Administration GSA 391,924
U.S. Postal Service USPS 187,982
U.S. Department of Justice DOJ 145,437
U.S. Department of Transportation DOT 122,876
National Aeronautics and Space Administration NASA 113,472
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services HHS 97,014
U.S. Department of the Interior DOI 88,114
Other Agencies Other 505,703
Total:   5,259,595

FY 2021 Renewable Electricity Procurement Methods

Federal agencies procured 5.2 million MWh of renewable electricity using the following methods.

Chart breaks down the methods used to procure renewable electricity.

Review the FY 2021 Renewable Electricity Procurement Data

Procurement Method MWh Percentage of 5.2 million MWh
Renewable energy certificate (REC) purchases 2,113,643 40.2%
Direct bonus and REC replacement 1,478,331 28.1%
On-site renewable energy 1,164,258 22.1%
Off-site renewable energy 503,363 9.6%

Renewable energy certificate (REC) purchases: RECs represent the renewable attributes of generation produced from renewable energy projects and are sold separately from commodity electricity. Agencies can purchase RECs to help achieve their renewable energy goals.

Direct bonus and REC replacement: Renewable energy that is produced on federal or Indian land and for which the agency owns the renewable attributes, referred to as on-site renewable energy, allows the agency to claim a bonus toward their renewable energy goal. An agency can own the project and RECs directly, or, if the agency gives up ownership of the RECs to another party, it can purchase replacement RECs to reclaim the bonus.

On-site renewable energy: Produced from projects on federal or Indian land where the agency owns the renewable energy attributes.

Off-site renewable energy: Includes both the renewable attributes (RECs) and the source electricity for the renewable attributes.

On-Site Renewable Energy Progress

In FY 2021, federal agencies used 1.16 million MWh of renewable electricity from on-site renewable energy projects—1.5 times more than in FY 2015, and 5 times more than in FY 2010.

Chart shows the progress of on-site renewable energy.

Review the On-Site Renewable Energy Progress Data

On-Site Renewable Energy (MWh) FY 2010 FY 2015 FY 2021
Solar Photovoltaic 70,488 322,714 680,909
Incremental Hydropower 42,744 108,708 153,305
Biogas (captured methane) 34,340 134,829 107,358
Wind 59,266 94,135 87,910
Biomass (wood and wood residuals) 40 77,513 66,186
Other Sources 11,928 437 63,723
Concentrating Solar Power 252 254 4,842
Geothermal 2,069 30 25
Totals (MWh): 221,127 738,620 1,164,258

 

FY 2021 On-Site Solar Energy Generation

In FY 2021, federal agencies generated 680,909 MWh of renewable electricity with on-site solar energy projects. The top five states for federal on-site solar energy generation were California (166,708 MWh), Hawaii (80,054 MWh), Arizona (60,609 MWh), Georgia (57,085 MWh), and Maryland (43,421 MWh). Solar generation is grouped into ranges of similar output in the map below.

A heat map indicating the use of renewable electricity with on-site solar energy projects.

FY 2021 On-Site Wind Energy Generation

In FY 2021, federal agencies generated 87,910 MWh of renewable electricity with on-site wind energy projects. The top five states for federal on-site wind energy generation were Texas (65,305 MWh), Massachusetts (9,753 MWh), Utah (5,292 MWh), Wyoming (3,621 MWh), and California (2,013 MWh). Wind generation is grouped into ranges of similar output in the map below.

A heat map indicating the use of renewable electricity with on-site wind energy projects.

Federal Renewable Electricity Requirement

In accordance with Section 203 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. § 15852), each fiscal year the federal government must consume at least 7.5% of its total electricity from renewable sources—referred to as the renewable electricity requirement.

As defined in 42 U.S.C. § 15852(b), renewable electricity is electric energy generated from solar, wind, biomass, landfill gas, ocean (including tidal, wave, current, and thermal), geothermal, municipal solid waste, or new hydroelectric generation capacity achieved from increased efficiency or additions of new capacity at an existing hydroelectric project. Nonelectric or thermal renewable energy, including geothermal heat pumps, does not count toward the renewable electricity requirement, but will be tracked as an indicator for an agency’s OMB Scorecard.

For most recent requirements, see Federal Renewable Energy Use Requirement: 42 U.S.C. § 15852(a) as amended by EPAct § 203 and the Energy Act of 2020 §§ 3002(o), 3006(b)(2) of December 27,2020, 134 Stat. 2497, 2512).