U.S. wind capacity, generation grew again in 2012 - Beckley, Bluefield & Lewisburg News, Weather, Sports

Wind generation made up nearly half of all new electric generation capacity installed last year in the U.S.

The 13,124 megawatts of wind capacity installed in 2012 represented 42 percent of new generating capacity, the American Wind Energy Association said in a March 13 media release. That took the nation's total wind generation capacity over 60,000 megawatts by year end.

The 140 million megawatt hours of electricity generated from wind in 2012 represented a 17 percent increase from 2011, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, and made up 3.5 percent of U.S. electricity.

Wind generated more than 10 percent of electricity in nine states, up from five states in 2011, the AWEA said, and it generated more than 20 percent in Iowa and South Dakota.