gigawatt

noun

giga·​watt ˈji-gə-ˌwät How to pronounce gigawatt (audio) ˈgi- How to pronounce gigawatt (audio)
: a unit of power equal to one billion watts

Examples of gigawatt in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The Lone Star State added 6.3 gigawatts of solar energy, largely driven by industrial-scale installations, according to Wall Street Journal columnist Rob Curran. Tony Briscoe, Los Angeles Times, 19 Mar. 2024 Cumulatively, nine facilities could eventually add 2.1 gigawatts in new electricity demand. Justine Calma, The Verge, 6 Mar. 2024 In 2020, nuclear power accounted for around 370 gigawatts of electrical capacity; that’s roughly 10 percent of the globe’s total electrical capacity. IEEE Spectrum, 23 Jan. 2024 Compass has said its portion of the project will require as much as 1.7 gigawatts of electric capacity when completed, enough to power nearly 1.3 million homes. Antonio Olivo, Washington Post, 13 Dec. 2023 As of July 2023, over 2,000 gigawatts of renewable power were backlogged to connect to the grid, almost double the current energy capacity in the United States. Hudson Hollister, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024 Related article World’s biggest polluter just had its hottest year on record, marked by deadly extreme weather China approved 114 gigawatts (GW) of coal power capacity in 2023, up 10% from a year earlier. Reuters, CNN, 22 Feb. 2024 Less than a year ago, Orsted announced plans to to spend $68 billion in building green power capacity of 50 gigawatts by 2030—but now its 2030 target has been revised down to between 35 and 38 gigawatts. Prarthana Prakash, Fortune Europe, 7 Feb. 2024 Compass said its portion of the project will require as much as 1.7 gigawatts of electric capacity when completed, enough to power nearly 1.3 million homes. Antonio Olivo, Washington Post, 10 Dec. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'gigawatt.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1962, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of gigawatt was circa 1962

Dictionary Entries Near gigawatt

Cite this Entry

“Gigawatt.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gigawatt. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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