Section 2: Installed Capacity vs. Actual Generation (2024)
This section answers a simple question: what West Virginia has (capacity) versus what West Virginia actually used (generation). The two are not the same—and that gap is where reliability arguments either stand up or fall over.
A. Net Summer Capacity by Resource (MW)
In 2024, West Virginia had 15,128 MW of total net summer generating capacity. Coal was the dominant installed resource, with natural gas and renewables making up most of the remainder.
Net Summer Capacity (2024, MW)
| Resource | Capacity (MW) | Share of Total |
|---|---|---|
| Coal | 12,543 | 82.9% |
| Natural Gas | 1,204 | 8.0% |
| Petroleum | 11 | 0.1% |
| Conventional Hydroelectric | 341 | 2.3% |
| Wind | 855 | 5.7% |
| Solar | 124 | 0.8% |
| Biomass | 3 | 0.0% |
| Total Renewable (Hydro+Wind+Solar+Biomass) | 1,324 | 8.8% |
| Battery Storage | 48 | 0.3% |
| Total (All Resources) | 15,128 | 100.0% |
What to notice: West Virginia’s installed fleet is overwhelmingly dispatchable, and that reality shows up even more clearly in the generation figures below.
B. Net Generation by Resource (MWh)
In 2024, West Virginia generated 50,594,818 MWh of electricity.
Coal provided the large majority of actual output, with gas and renewables supplying most of the balance. The fuel-by-fuel totals below come from EIA’s State Electricity Profile (WV) — Full data tables (Table 5: generation by primary energy source).
Net Generation (2024, MWh)
| Resource | Generation (MWh) | Share of Total |
|---|---|---|
| Coal | 43,097,869 | 85.18% |
| Natural Gas | 3,782,254 | 7.48% |
| Wind | 2,002,848 | 3.96% |
| Hydroelectric | 1,361,332 | 2.69% |
| Solar | 155,869 | 0.31% |
| Petroleum | 124,788 | 0.25% |
| Other gas | 39,917 | 0.08% |
| Biomass | 7,618 | 0.02% |
| Battery Storage (net) | -7,623 | -0.02% |
| Total (All Resources) | 50,594,818 | 100.00% |
Two important interpretive notes (so nobody can play games with the math):
- Capacity is classified by primary energy source, while generation is classified by fuel actually burned. That’s why you can see non-trivial petroleum generation even though petroleum “capacity” is tiny—oil is often used for start-up, stabilization, or dual-fuel operation at units whose primary capacity is counted elsewhere.
- Battery “net generation” can be negative because storage consumes electricity when charging and produces when discharging; net values reflect that accounting.
C. What the Output Says About Utilization (Calculated Capacity Factors)
Using 2024 generation and 2024 net summer capacity, the implied utilization (capacity factor) for the major resources is:
| Resource | 2024 Capacity Factor (approx.) |
|---|---|
| Coal | ~39% |
| Natural Gas | ~36% |
| Hydroelectric | ~46% |
| Wind | ~27% |
| Solar | ~14% |
These figures are not talking points—they are simply the operational reality implied by what’s installed versus what ran.
Bottom Line of Section 2
West Virginia’s grid is built on a large dispatchable backbone (coal + gas), and in 2024 that backbone delivered the overwhelming majority of actual electricity produced in the state.