Wind, solar, and hydropower (WWS) have met 56.2% of all electricity demand on the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) grid so far in 2026. Moreover, WWS has exceeded 100% of electricity demand on the CAISO grid for 18.5% of all hours in 2026 so far. cleantechnica.com/2026/09/14/m...

More Than 56% of California Electricity Demand Supplied by Wind, Water, & Solar in 2026 - CleanTechnica

Support CleanTechnica's work through a Substack subscription, on Patreon, or on Stripe. Help us produce all of the high-quality, original content we publish week after week despite the challenges of content-scraping AI, antisocial media, inflation, and other hurdles. California keeps installing more and more renewable energy power plants and rooftop ... [continued]

cleantechnica.com

The US solar industry added 11.4-GWdc of new electricity generating capacity in Q2 2026, a 45% year-over-year increase and a 43% increase from Q1. Utility-scale solar led the Q2 surge with 9.6-GWdc, up 61% year-over-year. US solar can now power 50+ million American homes. seia.org/news/us-sola...

REPORT: U.S. Solar Capacity Can Now Power Over 50 Million American Homes – SEIA

The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) is leading the transformation to a clean energy economy. Learn more at seia.org

seia.org

According to the European climate service Copernicus, the world averaged 62.53 degrees F (16.96 degrees C) in August making it the hottest month on record, blowing past a key climate threshold, due to the dangerous double whammy of climate change & a supersized El Nino. www.yahoo.com/news/science...

In its latest "Short-Term Energy Outlook" report, the U.S. EIA states: “As wind and utility-scale solar capacity continues to be added to the grid, we expect solar generation to grow by 21% in 2026 & by 18% in 2027, while wind generation grows 7% in 2026 & 5% in 2027.” www.eia.gov/outlooks/ste...

Albuquerque, NM plans to deploy 6-MW of solar energy generation across eight city facilities, helping close the remaining gap toward the city’s goal of 100% renewable energy for municipal operations. Construction of the sites will phase in through 2027. www.solarpowerworldonline.com/2026/09/eigh...

Eight solar projects should bring Albuquerque to 100% renewable energy

Sustainability Partners (SP), a Public Benefit Company, is partnering with the City of Albuquerque and Energy Systems Group (ESG) to deploy approximately

solarpowerworldonline.com

U.S. independent power producer Cypress Creek Energy has begun commercial operation at its 104-MWdc/80-MWac Ostrea Solar project in Yakima County, WA. Microsoft has signed a power purchase agreement for electricity & environmental products from the project. cypresscreekenergy.com/news/ostrea-...

Cypress Creek Energy’s Ostrea Solar Reaches Commercial Operation, Helping Power Nation’s Fastest-Growing State Economy | Cypress Creek

104 MWdc / 80 MWac solar project adds new, clean, American-made power to the region as Washington leads the U.S. in economic growth Microsoft has signed a power purchase agreement...

cypresscreekenergy.com

Equinor has started operations at its 100-MW/200-MWh Citrus Flatts battery energy storage project in Texas. Equinor is also developing a battery storage portfolio in Virginia comprising four 80-MW/160-MWh projects that are due to reach commercial operations in 2027. www.renews.biz/other-news/e...

PG&E, Rewiring America, Renew Home, et al announced a first-of-its-kind virtual power plant that will aggregate over 20,000 existing energy devices in customers’ homes across the Bay Area and thus deploy additional capacity (12 MW) during times of peak electricity demand. www.pge.com/en/newsroom/...

A new analysis of overseas markets by Ember indicates that the up-front cost of solar power has sunk to the point where solar is more economical and accessible than coal or natural gas, ultimately pushing U.S. fossil energy producers out of the export market. cleantechnica.com/2026/09/01/s...

Solar Power Leaps Key Cost Barrier In Electricity-Deprived Nations

A new report on the cost of solar power indicates that clean power can beat coal and gas for the 74 members of the Climate Vulnerable Forum.

cleantechnica.com

California's legislature has passed SB 868, a bill that would allow homeowners & renters to buy portable balcony solar systems & plug them in without first getting an interconnection agreement from the utility. It now waits for the governor’s signature. www.solarpowerworldonline.com/2026/08/cali...

California sends balcony solar bill to governor for signature

The California legislature has passed a bill that would allow residents to install balcony solar systems. It now waits for the governor's signature.

solarpowerworldonline.com

Over the Last Five Years, Solar Capacity Tripled; Batteries Grew 20-Fold; and Wind Expanded 33%. Renewables Now Generate >30% of U.S. Electricity and Are Poised to Surpass Gas Capacity Within the Coming Year as New Renewables & Battery Storage Grow by 83-GW. www.nacleanenergy.com/solar/over-t...

The Northwest Power and Conservation Council has unveiled a plan to add 14-GW of clean energy by 2032 to meet rising electricity demand in Washington, Oregon, Montana and Idaho. The plan calls for 9-GW of solar and wind, 5-GW of battery storage and 2-GW of gas. www.latitudemedia.com/news/pacific...

Pacific Northwest targets 14 GW clean energy buildout by 2032

Regional planners called for a massive expansion of solar, wind, and batteries to meet data center demand.

latitudemedia.com

Arevon Energy, Inc. has announced that its 300-MW/1,200-MWh Nighthawk Energy Storage Project in Poway, California is operational. Nighthawk is the largest standalone battery storage project in the company’s portfolio & uses lithium iron phosphate battery technology. finance.yahoo.com/energy/artic...

Arevon's 300 Megawatt Nighthawk Energy Storage Project is Operational in Poway, California

Arevon Energy, Inc., a leading American energy developer, owner, and operator, today announced that its 300 megawatt (MW)/1,200 megawatt-hour Nighthawk Energy Storage Project in Poway, California, is ...

finance.yahoo.com

NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information reports that July 2026 tied with July 2024 as the planet’s hottest July since modern record-keeping began in 1850, with the planet's temperature 2.12 degrees Fahrenheit above the 20th century average. yaleclimateconnections.org/2026/08/july...

July 2026 ties with July 2024 as Earth's hottest month on record » Yale Climate Connections

North America, Africa, and Asia all experienced their hottest month on record.

yaleclimateconnections.org

Solar, hydropower, and wind generation grew by 21%, 9% & 6%, respectively, in the first half of 2026 (1H26) compared with 1H25. The U.S. Energy Information Administration expects continued growth in renewable energy capacity additions to sustain this trend through 2027. www.eia.gov/outlooks/ste...

A federal judge in Oregon has granted renewable energy groups’ motion to force the Pentagon to complete standard national security reviews for U.S. onshore wind projects to see if they adversely impact military operations. DOD has delayed the reviews for the past year. www.eenews.net/articles/jud...

Judge orders Pentagon to restart stalled wind project reviews

Over the past year, the Defense Department has held up wind project development across the country, clean energy groups say.

eenews.net

U.S. utility-scale battery storage capacity experienced an annual average growth rate of 70% during the last three years. By the end of 2025, the U.S. power system had operational battery storage capacity of 43.6-GW and added another 8.3-GW in the first half of 2026. www.eia.gov/todayinenerg...

U.S. electric company Southern Power has started commercial operations at the 180-MW second phase of its Millers Branch Solar Facility in Haskell County, Texas. The second phase is marginally smaller than the first phase of the project—which stands at 200-MW. www.pv-tech.org/southern-pow...

Southern Power starts commercial operations at second phase of Millers Branch solar farm, signs seven-party VPPA

Southern Power has started commercial operations at the 180MW second phase of its Millers Branch Solar Facility in Haskell County, Texas.

pv-tech.org

Danish energy company Ørsted says its 250-MW/500-MWh Old 300 battery energy storage system in Needville, Texas has achieved commercial operation, joining its ~6-GW portfolio of onshore U.S. renewables. It is co-located with the 430-MW Old 300 solar project. www.thebatterymagazine.com/orsted-commi...

Ørsted Commissions 250 MW Battery Energy Storage Project

Ørsted has commenced commercial operations at its 250 MW/500 MWh Old 300 Storage project in Texas, enhancing ERCOT grid reliability.

thebatterymagazine.com

The Trump administration is paying yet another company, RWE U.S. Offshore (a subsidiary of German energy company RWE), $1.22 billion in settlement funds to give up the rights to build wind farms off the coasts of New York, California and Louisiana. thehill.com/policy/energ...

Trump pays yet another energy company to give up offshore wind rights

The Trump administration is paying yet another company more than $1 billion to give up the rights to produce wind off the U.S. coast, the firm announced Thursday. RWE U.S. Offshore, a subsidiary of…

thehill.com

The International Energy Agency says global sales of electric cars will grow 10% this year, hitting 29% of total car sales. Overall, amid rising gas prices from the Iran war, over 90 countries recorded year-on-year growth in electric car sales during the 1st half of 2026. www.iea.org/news/quarter...

Quarterly sales of electric cars break records in several key markets amid energy crisis - News - IEA

Quarterly sales of electric cars break records in several key markets amid energy crisis - News from the International Energy Agency

iea.org

Origis Energy has begun commercial operations at 3 new phases of its Rockhound Solar complex in Ector County, TX adding about 500-MWdc & bringing the site’s operating capacity to almost 1-GWdc. The site is expected to exceed 2-GW of solar & storage capacity by 2029. www.renews.biz/solar/origis...

The Trump administration has acknowledged in court documents that it canceled $7.6 billion in grants for hundreds of clean energy projects in 16 states that voted for Democrat Kamala Harris in 2024 "based solely on the political identity of the grant recipient's state". www.yahoo.com/news/politic...

Trump administration admits grants for clean energy were canceled based on politics

The Trump administration has acknowledged in court documents that it canceled $7.6 billion in grants for hundreds of clean energy projects “based solely on the political identity of the grant recipien...

yahoo.com

New EIA data reveal electrical generation by renewables has grown by 10%. Solar, wind & battery storage are projected to add ~83.0-GW of new generating capacity in the U.S. by May 31, 2027 while total fossil fuel & nuclear power capacity will fall by almost 4.7-GW. renewablesnow.com/news/renewab...

Renewables and battery storage added 61.3 GW in US during past year

 New data just released by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), and reviewed by the SUN DAY Campaign, reveal growth of more than 10% in electrical generation by renewable energy sour...

renewablesnow.com

A University of Minnesota study of more than 120 million trips finds that if drivers of gasoline cars refrained from speeding, they would collectively save an average of 57,000 metric tons of carbon emissions & $22 million in fuel costs daily in the U.S. www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2026/07/obey...

Obeying the speed limit would save 57,000 tons of carbon a day. It would cost you 54 seconds.

A study of more than 120 million trips finds that Americans' rush to save time on the road comes at an outsize environmental cost.

anthropocenemagazine.org

US utility Xcel Energy Inc has completed the third phase of its Sherco Solar project in Becker, Minnesota, bringing the solar park's capacity to 710-MW, powered by 1.7 million solar panels and helping to transform a retiring coal plant into a renewables hub. newsroom.xcelenergy.com/news/xcel-en...

Xcel Energy Completes Sherco Solar Phase 3

CLEAR LAKE, Minn., (July 21, 2026) — Xcel Energy announced the completion of Sherco Solar Phase 3, marking another major milestone in the company's transformation of a retiring coal plant into a major...

newsroom.xcelenergy.com

U.S.-based power developer Competitive Power Ventures has brought its 114-MW CPV Rogue's Wind Farm in Cambria County, Pennsylvania into commercial operation. Built on former coal mine land, it will generate enough electricity to support approximately 32,000 households. cpv.com/2026/07/22/c...

CPV Rogue’s Wind Enters Commercial Operations, Expanding Company’s Footprint in PJM

CPV Rogue’s Wind reflects the company’s diverse portfolio and innovative approach to land redevelopment as our third operating project in Cambria County, PA, and our third project nationally repurposi...

cpv.com

U.S. independent power producer Avantus has started commercial operations at its Aratina 1 project in Kern County, California. The project combines 200-MW of solar PV capacity and a 500-MWh battery energy storage system - enough to power 105,000 California homes. avantus.com/news/Avantus...

Avantus’ Aratina 1 Project Officially Online, Generating Enough Clean, Reliable Energy to Power 105,000 California Homes | Avantus

Avantus develops and builds utility-scale solar and energy storage to deliver clean, reliable power to communities and businesses across the Western U.S.

avantus.com

US renewable developer & operator rPlus Energies has commissioned the 125-MW Pleasant Valley Solar 2 plant in Idaho and broken ground on the 400-MW Blacks Creek Energy Center in Ada County. It has now developed more than 1-GW of solar & storage projects in Idaho. renewablesnow.com/news/rplus-s...

A new report by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy finds improving energy efficiency in buildings, transportation, and industry in the U.S. could save about $4.8 trillion in energy and related costs by 2050, equivalent to almost $31,000 per household. www.aceee.org/press-releas...

Study: Cutting Energy Waste Could Save $4.8 Trillion

Improving energy efficiency in buildings, transportation, and industry in the U.S. could deliver massive savings.

aceee.org