With America\u2019s power grid stressed by a historic winter storm, expensive \u201cgreen\u201d energy sources like wind and solar proved unreliable.<\/p>\n
A new report on power use over the days of Winter Storm Fern, which brought both massive snow accumulation and damaging waves of ice, found that traditional power sources like natural gas, coal, and nuclear provided 80% of U.S. electricity during the storm\u2019s most destructive days. Wind, by contrast, contributed\u00a0single-digit percentages, and solar was largely unattainable during the coldest and darkest hours.<\/p>\n
Data from some 500,000 federal electricity records, analyzed by nonprofit Power the Future<\/a>, show the\u00a0states that most heavily rely on renewable energy\u00a0faced the greatest vulnerabilities\u00a0and the highest prices during Storm Fern.<\/p>\n \u201cElectricity must be affordable. It must be reliable. And before we talk about all-of-the-above, it, above all, must be there when people need it,\u201d the report states. \u201cWinter Storm Fern made clear that energy policy rooted in reality beats climate ideology every time.\u201d<\/p>\n The analysis concerning Storm Fern comes on the heels of President Donald Trump criticizing wind energy during a speech at the 2026 World Economic Forum in Davos.\u00a0Additionally, last month, the administration\u00a0paused leases for five large offshore wind projects on the East Coast.<\/p>\n Notably, perpetually proven-wrong climate alarmist Al Gore called Trump\u00a0\u201cinsane\u201d for canceling the wind projects.<\/p>\n Power the Future\u2019s analysis was confirmed by others, which similarly found use of renewables dwindling towards zero during the coldest days.<\/p>\n Minimizing emissions is important and should be one of the goals of the energy system. And yet, we have to be honest about where wind+solar+batteries are today on a very cold day in the northeast. \u2014 John Arnold (@johnarnold) January 26, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Many far-left politicians have stated goals of moving to full reliance on renewables, which would likely mean power would be nonexistent when it\u2019s needed most.<\/p>\n Conservative commentator Gabriella Hoffman put it bluntly<\/a>: \u201cWinter Storm Fern reminds us that net-zero is unsustainable.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAn energy system must be undergirded by reliable, abundant, dispatchable power \u2013 not weather-dependent wind, solar, batteries that are costly AND ultimately fail to deliver substantial emissions reductions,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n To boot, Americans are spending more money on these \u201cgreen\u201d power sources. For example, in states like California, Massachusetts, New York, and New Jersey \u2014 where fossil fuels have been replaced the fastest \u2014 energy prices have risen significantly.<\/p>\n
Everything below the red line is conventional generation.
via @grid_status<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/xm5GcKaqpb<\/a><\/p>\n