• The sun sets behind several 285ft tall 2.5 MW Clipper wind turbines at the BP Sherbino Mesa II Wind Farm, Monday, Feb. 20, 2012, in Fort Stockton. After cutting its solar program last year, BP is beefing up its investments into wind energy and recently launched its fourth Texas wind farm, in Fort Stockton. On 20,000 acres in Pecos County, the Sherbino II farm has 60 wind turbines to generate enough electricity to power more than 175,000 homes. ( Michael Paulsen / Houston Chronicle ) Photo: Michael Paulsen, Staff / © 2012 Houston Chronicle

Wind is expected to surpass hydroelectric power in 2018 as the largest source of renewable power in the U.S., according to the U.S. Department of Energy.

Hydro power was one of the first technologies used to generate electricity, and has remained the nation's dominant source of renewable power even as wind and solar power have grown rapidly in the past few years.

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The Energy Department expects wind power capacity to grow significantly in 2018 and 2019, as fewer hydro-electric plant will come online. Wind power capacity in the U.S. is expected to grow by 9 percent in 2018 and 8 percent in 2019.

Wind could then provide as much as nearly 7 percent of utility-scale power generation in the U.S. in 2018, up from 6.3 percent in 2017. Hydro power, on the other hand, will expected to fall from 7.4 percent in 2017 to 6.6 percent in 2019, according to the Energy Department.