Solar and battery storage claimed 91% of all new electricity capacity added to the US grid in the first quarter of 2026. That's not a typo. Wind, natural gas, coal, and nuclear combined for the remaining 9%, according to data from the Solar Energy Industries Association and Wood Mackenzie.
Energy storage hit a record 9.7 gigawatt-hours in Q1 2026 , while renewables accounted for 30.0% of total US electrical generation during the first third of 2026 – up from 27.8% a year earlier , the Energy Information Administration reported. The surge comes as the US prepares to add 86 GW of new utility-scale generating capacity in 2026, nearly doubling the 53 GW installed in 2025 . Yet this buildout is unfolding against a backdrop of collapsing installations in China, permitting bottlenecks that have paralyzed US wind development, and power purchase agreement prices climbing to record highs.
Can the US Sustain This Pace?
Not if permitting delays continue. The SEIA report noted that 457 solar and storage projects totaling 100 gigawatts have permits pending and are vulnerable to politically motivated delays or cancellations . Michelle Davis, head of solar at Wood Mackenzie, warned that "We are forecasting that US solar additions will be flat over the next five years despite the need for more power supply in the US" .
Wind faces even steeper headwinds. Lengthy bottlenecks, especially regarding Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approvals for turbine height and location, have stalled significant amounts of wind development across the United States , according to PV Magazine. The result: The average North American solar power purchase agreement price rose 4.7% during the first quarter of 2026, while wind prices rose nearly 8%. Solar and wind PPA costs have increased 13% and 24%, respectively, since this time last year , LevelTen Energy data shows.
Wind energy enjoys particularly strong demand, but remains in scarce supply; growing scrutiny of wind permits at the federal level means new-build wind projects have "completely fallen off the map" in regions such as PJM , Rob Collier, vice president of the LevelTen Energy marketplace, told Utility Dive. The Trump administration's permitting freeze and Department of Defense objections on national security grounds have created what one analyst called the hardest environment for project development "it's ever been."
What Happened to China's Solar Boom?
It hit a wall. New solar PV installations in China reached 50.9GW between January and April 2026. Installation figures for the first four months of 2026 represent a 51% drop compared to the 104.93GW registered in the same period of 2025 , according to data from China's National Energy Administration cited by PV Tech. Reuters reported that developers added just 9.52 gigawatts of new capacity in April, a sharp drop from the 45 GW installed in April 2025, when companies rushed to complete projects before a major policy change in the pricing mechanism for solar power output .
The collapse was predictable. Much of that growth was driven by developers rushing to complete projects ahead of a June 1, 2025, deadline, which marked the shift from fixed pricing mechanisms to a more market-driven system . The China Photovoltaic Industry Association estimates installations at 180 GW to 240 GW AC in 2026, which will be 24% to 43% lower than the 315 GW AC installed in 2025 .
Yet China's renewable ambitions remain intact. By the end of March 2026, the country's total power generation capacity reached 3.96 terawatts, representing a year-on-year increase of 15.5%. Solar energy accounts for 1.24 TW of this total, while wind power contributes 660 GW .
