Report shows that US energy storage added in the first quarter hit a record.
A report on Thursday showed that U.S. energy developers installed 9,7 gigawatt hours of new capacity during the first quarter of 2026. This was a record-high quarter.
The Solar Energy Industries Association and Benchmark Mineral Intelligence report said that energy?storage capacity increased by?32% over the past quarter, despite federal policies the industry claims are slowing down clean energy development.
SEIA says that data centers, volatile electric prices and disruptions in global gas and gas-turbine supplies are driving demand.
Google and Meta, two major technology companies, announced this year deals to purchase tens thousands of megawatt hours of storage to power the data centers required to run AI technologies.
HURDSLES FOR CLEAN ENERGIA
Solar industry is facing tariff pressures and a freeze on major project approvals under the Trump administration. This is part of an agenda that focuses on coal, oil, gas and nuclear energy.
The report revealed that 467 projects involving solar energy and storage are awaiting permits and may face cancellation or delays.
The report stated that if federal permitting bottlenecks continue, the cost of electricity for households will continue to increase and China's position in the race to lead AI will grow.
The report estimates that storage capacity will increase by more than 610GWh by the year 2030.
SEIA's interim chief executive and president, Darren Van't Ho, said that the first quarter's performance in energy storage only highlights its fundamental value.
He said that adequate energy storage could shield consumers from fuel price shocks, lower electricity costs, and improve grid reliability.
Texas, Arizona and California were the top three states for utility-scale installation in the first quarter. More than 70% of the utility-scale capacity installed in this period was in states that were won by U.S. president Donald Trump.
The first quarter saw 7.8 GWh in utility-scale installations, 648 MWh for commercial and industrial projects and 515 MWh for residential systems. (Reporting and editing by Sahal Muhammad in Bengaluru, Pranav Mathur)
(source: Reuters)
