According to plans, the country is expected to add 86 gigawatts of new capacity, of which 51% will come from solar technologies, amounting to 43.4 GW.
“We anticipate that 2026 will be a landmark year for solar energy, continuing the trend of record capacity additions in 2024 (30.8 GW) and 2025 (27.2 GW). If the planned projects are realized, we expect that 43.4 GW of new solar capacity will be added in 2026, which is 60% more compared to last year,” the administration noted.
The majority of the new solar energy capacity will be located in four states: Texas (40%), Arizona (6%), California (6%), and Michigan (5%).
The largest project in this sector is the Tehuacana Creek 1 Solar and BESS, which will add 837 megawatts in Texas. It is expected to be operational in 2026 and will also provide 418 MW of energy storage system capacity.
