US Wind Energy Output Hit Record In '15, Industry Group Says

BRIGHTON, Colo. (AP) — An industry group says wind energy generated a record 191 megawatt-hours of electricity last year, enough for 17.5 million homes.

The American Wind Energy Association said Tuesday that wind produced 4.7 percent of the nation's electricity in 2015. It says coal generated 33 percent and natural gas slightly less than that.

The association released the statistics at a Vestas Wind Systems turbine plant in Brighton, Colorado near Denver.

Texas remains No. 1 for wind energy while Iowa is second. The report says Iowa generated more than 30 percent of its electricity from wind last year, a record for any state.

The association says the industry employed the equivalent of 88,000 full-time workers last year.

The group says tax breaks extended by Congress last year will help stabilize the industry.