Solar and Battery Storage to Drive New US Capacity in 2025
According to the latest report from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), titled ‘Preliminary Monthly Electric Generator Inventory’, the United States is set to add 63 GW of new utility-scale electric-generating capacity to its power grid in 2025. This marks an impressive nearly 30% increase compared to the 48.6 GW installed in 2024, which was the largest single-year capacity installation since 2002.
Solar and battery storage are expected to account for a substantial 81% of the total capacity additions, with solar alone contributing over 50% of this increase. In 2024, solar generators successfully added a record 30 GW of utility-scale solar to the grid, representing 61% of that year’s capacity additions. The EIA anticipates this upward trend to continue in 2025, projecting an additional 32.5 GW of new utility-scale solar capacity. Texas (11.6 GW) and California (2.9 GW) are expected to contribute nearly half of this total. Furthermore, five other states—Indiana, Arizona, Michigan, Florida, and New York—are each projected to add more than 1 GW of solar capacity, collectively amounting to 7.8 GW.
In terms of battery storage, 2025 could see record growth, with an expected 18.2 GW of utility-scale installations being added to the grid. In 2024, the US battery storage sector experienced remarkable growth, with power providers adding 10.3 GW of new capacity, underscoring the critical role of battery storage in conjunction with renewable energy.
The EIA also predicts that 7.7 GW of wind capacity will be added to the US grid in 2025, a significant increase from the 5.1 GW added the previous year, which was the smallest wind capacity addition since 2014. Texas, Wyoming, and Massachusetts are expected to comprise nearly half of these additions. Two major offshore wind projects scheduled to come online this year are the 800 MW Vineyard Wind 1 in Massachusetts and the 715 MW Revolution Wind in Rhode Island.
In addition, developers are planning to construct 4.4 GW of new natural gas-fired capacity in the United States during 2025. Of this, 50% will be simple-cycle combustion turbines, while 36% will consist of combined-cycle power blocks. States such as Utah, Louisiana, Nebraska, North Dakota, and Tennessee will account for over 70% of these planned natural gas additions. The two largest natural gas plants anticipated to be operational this year are the 840 MW Intermountain Power Project in Utah and the 678.7 MW Magnolia Power in Louisiana. Notably, the additions at the Intermountain project will replace 1,800 MW of coal-fired capacity, which is set to be retired in July this year.
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