Finding US Clean Power Development Sees Record Progress, As Well As Stronger Headwinds

This report by the World Resources Institute analyzes the state of clean energy in the United States through 2024, highlighting record growth in solar and battery storage alongside significant headwinds including grid capacity limits, rising local opposition, and policy uncertainty under the Trump administration.

• Solar and battery storage achieved record installations in 2024, while onshore wind growth slowed. Solar added an estimated 39.6 GW of capacity in 2024, bringing the U.S. total to approximately 220 GW, which provides over 7% of national electricity. Battery storage capacity nearly doubled in 2024 to almost 29 GW and is projected to grow by another 47% in 2025. Conversely, onshore wind added only 5.3 GW in 2024, with total capacity reaching 153 GW by the end of the year.
• Renewables and battery storage now constitute 30% of the United States' large-scale power generating capacity, with all carbon-free sources (including nuclear) supplying nearly 44% of electricity in 2024. To reach a target of 90% or more carbon-free electricity by 2035, the U.S. would need 60-70 GW of new renewables annually over the next decade; in 2023, combined solar and wind additions were approximately 45 GW.
• Electric vehicle (EV) sales hit a record 1.3 million units in 2024, representing about 8.7% of new car sales, though the growth rate slowed to 7.3% compared to a 49% increase between 2022 and 2023. Charging infrastructure expanded with over 37,700 new ports added in 2024, bringing the national total to more than 204,000 public ports.
• The U.S. is expanding its domestic clean energy supply chain, with at least 160 manufacturing facilities or expansions announced since August 2022. These projects are expected to create 100,000 new jobs and attract at least $500 billion in investment. Domestic solar module manufacturing grew to surpass 50 GW in 2024, with new or expanded facilities in Texas, Ohio, Florida, and Alabama.
• Grid and transmission limitations are significantly hindering deployment. Transmission infrastructure may need to grow by 57% by 2035 to meet demand. Currently, the active capacity in U.S. interconnection queues is double that of all existing power plants, with renewables making up over 95% of those projects.
• Local opposition to clean energy projects increased sharply in 2024, with approximately 15% of U.S. counties establishing clean energy bans, a more than 110% increase from the previous year. A Columbia Law School study found 395 local restrictions across 41 states and 19 state-level policies that effectively prohibit renewable development.
• Economic and supply chain pressures continue to raise costs. Transformer lead times for connection to the grid jumped from 50 weeks in 2021 to 120 weeks in 2024, with large transformers taking up to 210 weeks. Additionally, solar PPA prices rose 10.4% and wind PPA prices rose 14.1% year-over-year between 2023 and 2024 due to high borrowing costs.
• The Trump administration has introduced roadblocks to clean energy through executive orders that pause offshore wind leases, freeze fund disbursements, and encourage fossil fuel development. This includes blocking funds for the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program and declaring a national energy emergency to address electricity demand.

APA

Bird, L., Light, A., & Goldsmith, I. (2025). Finding US Clean Power Development Sees Record Progress, As Well As Stronger Headwinds. World Resources Institute. https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2026-04/state-of-clean-energy-february-2025.pdf

Chicago

Bird, Lori, Andrew Light, and Ian Goldsmith. Finding US Clean Power Development Sees Record Progress, As Well As Stronger Headwinds. World Resources Institute, 2025. https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2026-04/state-of-clean-energy-february-2025.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Bird |first1=Lori |last2=Light |first2=Andrew |last3=Goldsmith |first3=Ian |title=Finding US Clean Power Development Sees Record Progress, As Well As Stronger Headwinds |publisher=World Resources Institute |date=21 February 2025 |url=https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2026-04/state-of-clean-energy-february-2025.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{bird2025finding, author = {Bird, Lori and Light, Andrew and Goldsmith, Ian}, title = {{Finding US Clean Power Development Sees Record Progress, As Well As Stronger Headwinds}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, year = {2025}, month = feb, url = {https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2026-04/state-of-clean-energy-february-2025.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }