Renewable energy sources generated more than 11% more electricity in the first quarter of 2026 compared to the same period last year, according to new data from the US Energy Information Administration reviewed by the SUN DAY Campaign.
Renewables accounted for 28.6% of total US electricity generation in the first three months of 2026, with utility-scale solar leading growth at 23.9%, followed by hydropower at 21.9%, small-scale solar at 11.9% and wind at 2.1%.
Combined, wind and solar alone provided more than a fifth of domestic electricity production, outpacing nuclear by 14.3% and coal by 31.1%. Coal generation fell 11.4% over the same period.
Looking ahead, utility-scale solar, wind and battery storage are projected to add more than 80.6 GW of new generating capacity in the US by March 2027, almost double the 30.8 GW added in the previous 12 months.
Meanwhile, fossil fuel capacity is forecast to fall by 4.3 GW with no new nuclear capacity expected.
Battery storage capacity is projected to increase by more than 50% by spring 2027, rising from around 46.4 GW to nearly 70 GW. Including small-scale solar, total renewable capacity could surpass natural gas capacity as early as 2027.
Longer-term forecasts from EIA’s Annual Energy Outlook project utility-scale solar capacity to grow from 154.5 GW at the end of 2025 to 257.7 GW by 2030, with total renewable capacity rising nearly 40%.
Ken Bossong, Executive Director of the SUN DAY Campaign, said: “By a wide margin, renewables and battery storage will continue to dominate new growth in electrical capacity and generation.”
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