GRID RELIABILITY IN THE CLEAN ENERGY TRANSITION

This briefing from Energy Innovation examines the challenges and opportunities for maintaining electric grid reliability during the transition to clean energy in the United States. It defines the components of reliability—resource adequacy, operational reliability, and resilience—and argues that while the shift to inverter-based resources (IBRs) and the retirement of fossil fuel plants create risks, these can be managed through interconnection reform, demand-side solutions, and a diverse portfolio of clean energy resources.

• The North American Electric Reliability Corporation’s (NERC) 2023-2024 assessments indicate that while the U.S. electricity supply is sufficient under normal conditions, extreme heat and cold pose risks of supply shortfalls in several regions. These risks are primarily driven by load growth and the retirement of expensive, aging fossil fuel power plants.
• Winter reliability is specifically threatened by fuel supply constraints, the poor performance of gas-fired power plants, and inefficient heating. In certain regions, forecast uncertainty or periods of low wind can further exacerbate these risks.
• In 2024, wind, solar, and batteries accounted for 93 percent of the 56 GW of new generating capacity added to the U.S. grid. While these inverter-based resources (IBRs) can provide essential reliability services and are often faster and more accurate than thermal resources, their full capabilities are hindered by a lack of understanding among grid operators and interconnection challenges.
• Fossil fuel resources are susceptible to extreme weather, which can lead to significant unplanned outages. For example, during Winter Storm Uri in Texas, un-winterized gas plants caused 58 percent of unplanned outages, and during Winter Storm Elliott, gas plants accounted for 70 percent of unexpected outages.
• Demand-side solutions are identified as a cost-effective way to manage load growth and are faster to deploy than new power plants. Currently, demand-response programs provide 60 GW of capacity, representing about 7 percent of national peak-coincident demand. By 2030, the U.S. could have nearly 200 GW of cost-effective load flexibility potential, potentially saving over $15 billion annually in system costs.
• Clean firm energy—weather-independent carbon-free resources such as geothermal, nuclear, and gas with high-level carbon capture—could make up 10-20 percent of total energy production in the least-cost scenarios for a decarbonized grid. However, these technologies are currently more expensive and less commercially available than wind, solar, and batteries.

APA

Energy Innovation (2025). GRID RELIABILITY IN THE CLEAN ENERGY TRANSITION. https://energyinnovation.org/wp-content/uploads/Grid-Reliability-in-the-Clean-Energy-Transition-Key-Takeaways.pdf

Chicago

Energy Innovation. GRID RELIABILITY IN THE CLEAN ENERGY TRANSITION. 2025. https://energyinnovation.org/wp-content/uploads/Grid-Reliability-in-the-Clean-Energy-Transition-Key-Takeaways.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Energy Innovation |title=GRID RELIABILITY IN THE CLEAN ENERGY TRANSITION |date=February 2025 |url=https://energyinnovation.org/wp-content/uploads/Grid-Reliability-in-the-Clean-Energy-Transition-Key-Takeaways.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{energyinnovation2025grid, author = {{Energy Innovation}}, title = {{GRID RELIABILITY IN THE CLEAN ENERGY TRANSITION}}, institution = {Energy Innovation}, year = {2025}, month = feb, url = {https://energyinnovation.org/wp-content/uploads/Grid-Reliability-in-the-Clean-Energy-Transition-Key-Takeaways.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }