Through 2023, developers and operators of power plants expect to add 85 gigawatts of new generating capacity to the U.S. electric grid, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration -- and most of that new capacity will come from solar power and battery storage projects.
EIA's most recent preliminary analysis shows plans to add 51 gigawatts of new solar power and battery storage capacity in 2022 and 2023. This accounts for 60 percent of the total new capacity planned for this time period. Utility-scale solar accounts for 41 gigawatts (48 percent) of the planned capacity for the next two years. EIA projects utility-scale solar photovoltaic capacity to grow by 22 gigawatts in 2022. According to EIA, tax credits and (especially for battery storage) falling technology costs contributed to this trend.
The remaining planned capacity additions for the next two years are largely powered by natural gas (16 gigawatts) and wind (15 gigawatts).
