Latest data issued by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), reviewed by the SUN DAY Campaign, indicate that renewable energies are on track to surpass natural gas and control more than 40% of the total electricity generating capacity in the United States over the coming year.
During the first eight months of 2026, electricity generation from renewable sources recorded a growth of over 10.2% year-on-year. Utility-scale solar power topped the growth list with an increase of 20%, followed by small-scale solar power at 12%, wind energy at 7.8%, while hydropower witnessed a slight growth of 4.2% and geothermal energy 3.8%.
Performance Comparison with Fossil Fuels and Nuclear
Wind energy alone recorded a production of 333,367 gigawatt-hours, representing 10.6% of total electricity generation in the United States, while solar energy in both its large and small sectors produced about 329,119 gigawatt-hours, accounting for 10.5%. In contrast, production from natural gas plants and nuclear energy grew at slow rates of 2.6% and 1.3% respectively, while production from coal plants dropped by 8.7%.
In terms of installed capacity, renewable energy sources added more than 43,497 megawatts between September 2025 and August 2026, driven mainly by expansion in solar and wind energy projects, in addition to a notable surge in battery energy storage systems which alone added about 17,586 megawatts.
What is Practically Changing?
The US Energy Information Administration expects the pace of this growth to accelerate over the coming months, as major renewable energy projects are expected to add more than 53 gigawatts of new capacity. Factoring in the expected expansion in small-scale solar energy, forecasts indicate that the total capacity of renewable energies will reach about 550,000 megawatts by the summer of 2027, thereby surpassing the expected capacity of natural gas amounting to about 518,000 megawatts.
In addition, forecasts point to a growth in battery energy storage capacity by nearly 44% to reach about 77.7 thousand megawatts, which enhances the electrical grid's ability to absorb the growing proportion of renewable energies and gradually reduce reliance on fossil fuels and nuclear energy, which are witnessing stability or decline in net capacities.