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US Battery Storage Expands Amid EV Slump
Coverage from Reuters, World Economic Forum, and others
Articles
80
Active Days
169
The Topic
U.S. battery energy storage is expanding rapidly as utilities, developers and data centers seek dispatchable capacity to support rising electricity demand and renewable generation. Automakers and battery suppliers are converting some underused EV plants to produce storage cells, but domestic manufacturing still depends heavily on imported cells and materials, particularly from China. Growth remains constrained by equipment shortages, trade rules, permitting delays and uncertainty over tax-credit eligibility.
First Article: 01/01/00
Latest Article: 07/09/26
Summary
- U.S. storage installations reached records in 2025 and the first quarter of 2026, with further growth expected as electricity demand increases.
- Data centers and AI-related computing are emerging as major sources of demand for batteries used for backup power, faster grid connections and power-quality management.
- Automakers and battery suppliers are converting underused EV facilities to produce storage systems, including lithium-iron-phosphate cells.
- The storage market is expanding, but projected demand is not expected to absorb all excess EV battery manufacturing capacity.
- China remains important to U.S. storage supply chains, especially for cells and upstream materials, despite domestic-content incentives and Foreign Entities of Concern rules.
- Transformer, inverter and other balance-of-system shortages, along with permitting delays, could slow project deployment.
- Trade policy and changing tax-credit requirements are creating uncertainty over costs, sourcing and the viability of planned domestic capacity.
History
The story is slightly reframed: the main constraint is now described less as tariff uncertainty and more as trade-policy and tax-credit uncertainty, with permitting delays added as a clearer deployment bottleneck. The updated version also emphasizes that EV manufacturing overcapacity will not fully be absorbed by storage demand.
The story has narrowed from a broad global energy-transition investment trend to a more specific US battery-storage supply-chain and buildout story. The new emphasis is on how data-center demand, EV-factory conversions, and policy-driven domestic-content constraints are accelerating storage while exposing bottlenecks in components and imports.
Featured
04-15-2026
GM, Ford, and LG Energy Solution are shifting U.S. battery manufacturing toward stationary storage as AI-driven electricity demand grows, while projected storage demand fails to absorb EV battery oversupply this decade.
04-13-2026
U.S. battery storage installations rose 30% in 2025 to 58 GWh, with around 60 GWh more expected in 2026 amid FEOC sourcing limits and component bottlenecks.
06-24-2026
Executives at the Fastmarkets Global Lithium, Battery and Critical Materials Conference in Las Vegas said stationary battery storage demand is driving lithium market recovery after EV slowdowns and price declines.
Timeline: 169 Days
Hover over any logo to see coverage summary, click for full article.
Additional Articles
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BloombergNEF reported in January 2026 that global energy-transition investment reached $2.3 trillion in 2025, led by electrified transportation spending.
CAISO reported early-2026 utility-scale solar generation exceeding natural gas generation as solar capacity and battery storage expanded and electricity imports doubled.
In 2026 Q1, US homeowners installed a record 673 MW of residential battery storage as electricity prices rose and virtual power plant programs expanded.
BloombergNEF forecasts a 2026 decline in U.S. residential solar additions after the homeowner tax credit ended, reducing expected home battery additions.
RFF reports Global Energy Outlook 2025 shows global energy futures through midcentury with rising renewable deployment and emissions trajectories dependent on policy ambition.
California utilities increased solar and utility-scale battery deployment during 2023 to 2025, reducing daytime gas generation while data center-driven load growth supports continued evening gas reliability needs.
A 2026 analysis reports continued U.S. solar and battery capacity growth alongside major clean-energy cancellations tied to new federal policy deadlines and review delays.
BloombergNEF forecasts stationary battery storage surpassing 300 gigawatts annually by 2036 after 112 gigawatts of annual additions in 2025, led by China.
RMI reported through 2024 tracking that carbon-free power generation investment by US regulated utilities reached $14.5 billion in 2024, exceeding fossil-related investment.
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World Economic Forum and Accenture released Energy Transition Index 2026, reporting 2025 clean energy investment growth but widespread grid bottlenecks and geopolitics that fragment transition progress across 120 countries.
US utilities in 2025 increased renewable electricity to 26%, and an EIA forecast projects 93% of 2026-2027 capacity additions from solar, wind, and batteries amid policy and court challenges.
SEIA reports record U.S. battery storage installations in 1Q 2026 and projects 613 GWh by 2030 while warning that federal permitting delays could hinder deployment.
EIA forecasts hotter U.S. summer weather will raise cooling-driven electricity generation while increasing solar and wind and reducing coal output.
Wood Mackenzie and the American Clean Power Association report 3.3 GW battery storage added in the US during Q1 2026, projecting 200 GW by 2031.
ICF forecasts 445 GW of US capacity additions from 2026 to 2030 alongside 39% demand growth by 2035, with PJM and ERCOT facing near-term capacity tightness.
Kern County, California, brought Tumbleweed online in 2024 as a 125-megawatt eight-hour battery designed for longer-duration clean power delivery.
U.S. solar, wind, and batteries set spring record levels in California, Texas, New Mexico, and New York, increasing renewables plus storage contributions and reducing coal and gas.
EIA forecasts US utility-scale solar, wind, and battery storage growth through February 28, 2027, while fossil and nuclear capacity decline.
SEIA and Benchmark Mineral Intelligence reported 9.7 GWh of US energy storage additions in Q1 2026, driven by AI-driven demand and energy security needs.
SEIA and Wood Mackenzie report that US solar and storage delivered 91% of Q1 2026 new capacity, despite permitting bottlenecks affecting 457 projects.
Europe's Energy Storage Capacity Surges Past Nuclear as System Needs Grow
LCP Delta and Energy Storage Europe reported EMMES 10.0 on 22 June, showing Europe exceeded 100 GW battery storage in 2025 and projecting growth through 2030.
ACORE and S&P Global report policy and permitting uncertainty could slow U.S. solar, wind, and battery deployment as developers pursue expiring tax credits.
Solar developers in the United States rushed to secure expiring federal renewable tax credits before July 4, with projections of higher wind and solar contract prices.
The International Energy Agency reported 108 GW of global battery energy storage added in 2025, led by utility-scale deployments and falling battery costs.
Firmus Technologies and Gunvor Group agreed a 12-year energy supply package for South Australian AI Factory sites, combining new renewables and 1.5GWh grid battery storage.
U.S. residential battery installations reached 673 MW in Q1 2026 as federal solar tax credits ended and state incentives expanded adoption in California, Hawaii, Texas, and Arizona.
CATL launched the sodium-ion TENER battery storage system, with delivery timelines starting in China in September and global shipments planned for 2027.
US battery energy storage developers report scaling constraints for AI data center demand due to grid interconnection queues and China-dependent battery material supply chains.
Solar Energy Industries Association and Wood Mackenzie reported solar-plus-battery projects supplied 91% of new U.S. power capacity added in Q1 2026, with Texas leading deployment.
ACORE projected $120 billion renewable investment and up to 62 GW new U.S. capacity in 2026, citing tax-credit uncertainty and slow interconnection as key constraints.
SEIA and Wood Mackenzie report 6 million cumulative U.S. solar installations by Q1 2026, with storage-backed solar driving most Q1 capacity additions and residential demand projected to fall after 25D expiry.
Drax Electric Insights, using analysis with Imperial College London academics, reports UK battery energy storage capacity nearing 7 GW and surpassing nuclear capacity for grid flexibility amid rising demand.
BloombergNEF forecasts 4.1 gigawatts of U.S. residential solar additions in 2026 after a key homeowner tax credit ended, reducing solar and home battery deployments.
In Q1 2026, US residential battery installations added over 200 MW, led by California, as IRA incentives, falling costs, and grid discharge programs boosted deployments.
In the U.S., Texas leads new solar and battery storage deployment as solar surpassed coal monthly in May, per Ember and SEIA-Wood Mackenzie reports.
BloombergNEF forecasts U.S. residential solar additions of 4.1 GW in 2026 and a 26% drop in home batteries after a homeowner solar tax credit sunsets in late 2025.
BloombergNEF forecasts U.S. residential solar additions of 4.1 GW in 2026 after elimination of a homeowner tax credit, lowering home battery deployments, with California and Florida as exceptions.
BloombergNEF projects U.S. residential solar additions of 4.1 GW in 2026 after elimination of a 30% homeowner tax credit, reducing residential batteries.
Peak Energy announced a Sacramento sodium-ion battery systems factory while satellite evidence from China’s Great Green Wall suggested faster planted-forest carbon uptake.
After the U.S. ended a ceasefire with Iran, oil prices rose alongside forecasts for nuclear capacity growth and satellite findings on China Great Green Wall forest carbon uptake.
Environmental Defense Fund and Atlas Public Policy released The State of Clean Power Q1 2026 on US clean power deployment, reporting record pipeline growth alongside major cancellations in Q1 2026.
International Hydropower Association reported 11.7 GW of pumped storage came online in 2025, supporting flexibility needs for wind and solar despite financing and permitting constraints.
FERC reported utility-scale solar led new US power capacity for 28 months through end-2025, even as Trump administration clean-energy incentives faced rollbacks.
In 2025, global battery storage additions reached 108 GW, led by utility-scale projects, with rapid growth in Australia and Saudi Arabia amid grid and regulatory barriers.
EIA Electric Power Monthly reports renewables generated 30.0% of U.S. electricity in early 2026, with solar and wind growth and rapid battery storage expansion.
TrendForce data for Q1 2026 shows global energy storage cell shipments rising to about 224 GWh, with CATL holding a 22% share amid higher supplier concentration.
LevelTen Energy and Wood Mackenzie estimate July 4 renewable tax-credit losses could raise U.S. wind and solar contract prices, amid an AI-driven demand surge.
International Energy Agency reported about 108 GW of new battery energy storage capacity commissioned in 2025 across China, the United States, Europe, and Australia.
American Clean Power reports Q1 2026 US clean power pipeline growth of 6%, with solar and battery storage rising as offshore wind declines 35% from permitting delays.
CATL commercializes sodium-ion grid storage in China while US firms lobby for support through the American Battery Leadership Coalition, targeting long-duration battery needs.
Data center operators increasingly deploy utility-scale battery storage for peak shaving and grid services as AI load growth strains utilities, with projects in Minnesota and PJM.
China led global grid battery storage growth in 2025, adding about 112 GW and expanding solar-plus-storage capacity as lithium-ion prices fell.
U.S. states including Iowa, South Dakota, New Mexico, and California increased wind and solar electricity shares in 2025 as battery storage expands grid integration.
California recorded a battery discharge record above 12,000 megawatts in late March, supplying over 40% of demand and strengthening evening peak power as solar output declines.
FERC projections and historical capacity additions in the USA show solar continued leadership through 2025 and forecast 86 GW more solar through the next three years.
In the United States, clean energy expansion depends on transmission lines, battery storage, and digital grid cybersecurity alongside solar and wind generation.
Wood Mackenzie reported 18.9 GW of U.S. battery storage installed in 2025, rising 52% from 2024, with federal tax credits and California net billing tariffs driving growth.
Wood Mackenzie reported 18.9 GW/51 GWh of U.S. energy storage installed in 2025, while FEOC foreign-input rules and load growth assumptions shaped outlook through 2031.
Solar provided 87 percent of new U.S. electric capacity in Q1, with distributed solar adding over 1.6 GW and distributed storage over 1.1 GWh.
US Energy Information Administration data show record residential battery storage additions of 673 megawatts in Q1 2026, led by California and Hawaii amid higher electricity prices and state incentives.
In 2025, Benchmark Mineral Intelligence reports global BESS installations exceed about 315 GWh, expanding lithium demand beyond EVs toward grid and data center storage.
Household net metering is scheduled to end January 1, 2027, prompting solar economics to shift toward direct on-site consumption and load management.
Wood Mackenzie reported US energy storage deployments of 18.9 GW and 51 GWh in 2025, up 52% from 2024, with forecasts for 2026-2031 shaped by incentives and interconnection constraints.
DLA Piper surveyed 550 battery storage investors and lenders between Feb. 27 and March 9, ranking the US, UK, and China as most attractive for the next three years.
American Clean Power Association and Wood Mackenzie report US battery storage installations exceeded 18GW in 2025, with record 5.8GW Q4 and a 500GWh 2026-2031 forecast.
RMI says US electricity-grid reliability requires new generation, transmission, and storage as demand grows and extreme weather worsens.
American Clean Power Association and Wood Mackenzie report record 2025 U.S. battery storage growth, with 18.9 GW installed and over 28 GW projected by 2031.
The U.S. electricity gap widens as data center and industrial demand grows faster than generation and transmission capacity, supporting further price increases.
U.S. electricity projections through 2027 point to solar-driven renewable growth and a rapid expansion of battery storage.
In April 2024, the Biden Administration announced initiatives to accelerate U.S. electric transmission deployment, aiming to reduce grid bottlenecks for electrification and clean energy investment.
Tumbleweed, a 125 MW and eight-hour lithium-ion battery project, began operating June 1, 2026 in Kern County, California, supporting evening clean power delivery.
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BloombergNEF reports global energy transition investment rose to $2.3 trillion in 2025, led by electrified transportation and strong U.S. grid spending across China, the United States and Germany.
In 2025, Wood Mackenzie reported record U.S. battery storage deployments of 18.9 GW/51 GWh, while FEOC rules and demand growth drove forecast uncertainty through 2031.
Wood Mackenzie reported record 2025 U.S. energy storage installations of 18.9 GW and 51 GWh, while foreign entity restrictions and load assumptions drive forecast uncertainty through 2031.
BloombergNEF reports global energy transition investment reached $2.3 trillion in 2025, led by EVs, grid upgrades, and batteries across China, EU, and USA.
KBIGI reports global energy transition investment at 2.3 trillion USD in 2025 as renewables and storage drive grid expansion.
The Renewable Energy Institute reports US solar-led renewable capacity growth in 2025 and forecasts renewables plus batteries dominating new US electricity capacity in 2026.