From pv magazine USA
Almost all of the new electric generation capacity added to the US grid in 2025 is emissions-free, with solar leading the way.
The EIA has reported that the United States is projected to have a record year for electric capacity buildout in 2025, adding 64 GW. The previous record was set in 2002, when developers added 58 GW of capacity, 57 GW of which was natural gas.
But this time, the record year for installations will be led by an emissions-free source instead. Solar is expected to account for 33.3 GW of the 64 GW added this year. This is followed by 18.3 GW of battery energy storage, 7.8 GW of wind and 4.7 GW of natural gas said EIA.
Solar deployment is heating up as the year goes on. About 12 GW were added in the first half, but over 21 GW is expected to be deployed in the second half of 2025. This is likely due to a mix of seasonality of installations and due to a shifting policy landscape. Now that the uncertainty of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act has subsided, project timelines are being accelerated to meet the tightened deadlines for federal clean energy tax credits.
About 27% (3.2 GW) of the solar capacity added so far in 2025 is in Texas, said the EIA, and developers plan to bring another 9.7 GW of solar online in Texas in the second half of this year. Last year, Texas surpassed California as the state with the most utility-scale solar capacity.
Despite ongoing challenges, battery energy storage held the second-largest share of capacity additions for the first half of the year, adding 5.9 GW or about 26% overall. The EIA said about half of the installations were in Arizona or California. Developers in Texas are expecting to bring 7.0 GW of battery storage capacity online in 2025, with much of that capacity coming online in the second half of the year, said EIA.
The EIA noted in early 2025 that about 8.7 GW of fossil fuel capacity was expected to be retired this year, led by the shutdown of coal plants. However, 3.6 GW of planned retirements have been delayed or cancelled. This includes cancelled or delayed plans to retire the coal-fired Units 1 and 2 of Brandon Shores (1.3 GW), and oil-fired Units 3 and 4 of Herbert A Wagner (0.7 GW) in Maryland, as well as the natural gas-fired Units 1, 2 and 3 of the V H Braunig plant (0.9 GW) in Texas. EIA said coal will account for 71% of retired capacity this year, followed by natural gas at 19%.
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