By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer
Wind, solar, and storage installations grew at a record pace in the first half of 2026, but the sector could face a sharp drop due to Trump administration policies, according to an American Clean Power Association’s (ACP) market report.
In the second quarter, 164 utility-scale solar, wind, and storage projects came online, with 17.1 gigawatts (GW) of capacity – a 45% year-over-year increase, according to ACP, an industry trade group.
“The quarter marked the strongest second quarter and first half of a year on record for clean energy deployments, demonstrating that companies and utilities continue to recognize the value of clean energy,” the ACP market report said.
The pipeline of clean energy projects also hit a record high of 205 GW, an 11% year-over-year increase, including 111 GW of utility-scale solar and 56 GW of battery storage.
Clean power procurement was also up 23% to 14.5 GW compared to the second quarter of 2025, with power purchase agreement announcements reaching an all-time record for the first half of the year.
The underpinning of the robust performance is, however, shaky as wind and solar are benefiting from favorable economics and projects launched before President Donald Trump’s second term, which is favoring fossil fuels over renewables.
Federal tax credits for wind and solar projects are also being phased out between 2026 and 2030.
“If the administration continues to block the permitting of clean power, you’ll start to see a cliff,” Jason Grumet, ACP’s CEO, told Axios.
The largest capacity coming online was 7.4 GW of utility-scale solar, followed by 5 GW of land-based wind, and 4.7 GW of battery storage. The additional battery storage pushed total capacity to nearly 53 GW nationwide.
Land-based wind had its second biggest quarter on record as Pattern Energy’s 3.65 GW SunZia Wind and Transmission project in New Mexico started generating electricity.
SunZia is the largest land-based wind project ever built in the United States and produces more energy than the Hoover Dam and will supply up to one million households across the Western United States.
“Despite the sector’s strong performance, federal permitting and review delays continue to threaten future development. In particular, the land-based wind project pipeline fell 4% quarter-over-quarter,” the market report said.
Renewable generation, despite the Trump policy headwinds, remains the quickest and cheapest generation to build, according to ACP and the annual cost analysis by the financial consultant Lazard.
While solar and storage projects take an average of 1.5 years to complete, and wind 2.8 years, a combined-cycle natural gas plant takes 3.1 years to come online, according to an ACP study.
Lazard does an annual levelized cost of energy (LCOE) study in which the cost of building and operating a plant is divided by the electricity expected to be generated over the life of the facility.
In its 2026 analysis, Lazard said “unsubsidized renewable energy remains the most cost-competitive form of new-build generation on an LCOE basis. Wind, solar, and storage are expected to continue to account for the majority of near-term U.S. capacity additions given their relatively short deployment timeline.”
For solar photovoltaic the unsubsidized costs ranged from $50 to $90 a megawatt-hour in the LCOE study and land-based wind was $37 to $99 a megawatt-hour. The cost for a combined-cycle gas plant was $51 to $129 a megawatt-hour.
“When clean energy is allowed to compete fairly with other technologies, we know that it can deliver reliable, affordable energy to power American homes and businesses,” JC Sandberg, ACP’s chief policy officer said in a statement.
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