U.S. adds a record 15 GW of grid batteries in 2025, and plans 24 GW for 2026

February 2026 — U.S. power providers added a record 15 GW of utility-scale battery storage in 2025, and developers plan 24 GW more in 2026, the EIA reported on Feb. 20, 2026. Here's what happened, what it cost, and what went wrong.

Cost and outcome (as of February 20, 2026)

Outcome: 15 GW of utility-scale batteries added in 2025, a record. (EIA, Feb. 2026)
Plan for 2026: 24 GW, 28% of all planned 2026 capacity additions, if realized. (EIA, Feb. 2026)
Short of plan: EIA had expected 18.2 GW for 2025. (EIA, Feb. 2025) Actual: 15 GW. (EIA, Feb. 2026) Gap: 18.2 − 15 = 3.2 GW, about 18% below plan.
Cost: not reported by EIA.

The 2025 numbers

Battery additions of 15 GW in 2025 beat the 2024 record of 10.3 GW. (EIA, Feb. 2026; EIA, Feb. 2025) More than 40 GW of U.S. battery storage has been added in the last five years, EIA says, calling the growth exponential. (EIA, Feb. 2026)

All new capacity in 2025 totaled 53 GW, the largest single-year installation since 2002. (EIA, Feb. 2026)

EIA describes storage as a secondary source: batteries don't make electricity from a fuel or natural resource but store power already generated, helping balance supply and demand and improve grid stability. (EIA, Feb. 2025)

Where 2026's batteries go

About 80% of planned 2026 battery capacity is in three states: Texas, 12.9 GW (53%); California, 3.4 GW (14%); and Arizona, 3.2 GW (13%). (EIA, Feb. 2026)

The four largest battery projects scheduled for 2026, per EIA: Lunis Creek BESS in Jackson, Texas (621 MW); Clear Fork Creek Solar and BESS SLF in Wilson, Texas (600 MW); Bellefield 2 Solar & Energy Storage Farm in Kern County, California (500 MW); and Tehuacana Creek 1 Solar and BESS in Navarro County, Texas (418 MW). (EIA, Feb. 2026)

Tehuacana Creek 1 is also the largest solar project due in 2026, with 837 MW of solar alongside its 418 MW of storage. (EIA, Feb. 2026)

The rest of the 2026 build

Developers plan 86 GW of new utility-scale capacity in 2026, a record if realized. Solar is 51%, batteries 28% and wind 14%. (EIA, Feb. 2026)

Planned solar is 43.4 GW, up 60% on 2025's 27.2 GW. Wind could rise to 11.8 GW, more than double 2025, including the 3,650-MW SunZia Wind project in New Mexico, which EIA says will be the largest U.S. onshore wind project. Two offshore plants delayed from earlier years, the 800-MW Vineyard Wind 1 in Massachusetts and the 715-MW Revolution Wind in Rhode Island, are now planned for 2026. (EIA, Feb. 2026)

Natural gas plans total 6.3 GW: 3.3 GW combined-cycle and 2.8 GW combustion turbines, more than 80% of it in Texas, Oklahoma, Ohio, Tennessee and Florida. (EIA, Feb. 2026)

How the forecast did

A year earlier, EIA expected 63 GW of total additions in 2025, including 18.2 GW of batteries and 32.5 GW of solar. (EIA, Feb. 2025) The actual 2025 totals were 53 GW, 15 GW and 27.2 GW. (EIA, Feb. 2026)

What went wrong

2025 fell short of plan. Batteries came in 3.2 GW under EIA's 18.2 GW expectation; total capacity was 10 GW under the 63 GW expected (63 − 53). (EIA, Feb. 2025; EIA, Feb. 2026)
2026 is a plan, not a build. EIA calls the 86 GW a record only "if realized." (EIA, Feb. 2026)
Concentrated in one state. Texas holds 53% of planned 2026 battery capacity. (EIA, Feb. 2026)
What we don't know yet: how many hours of storage the new batteries provide, which EIA's capacity figures in GW don't show, and why 2025 projects slipped.

Our follow-up question for the U.S. Energy Information Administration

How much of the 24 GW of batteries planned for 2026 is online so far, and what share of 2025's planned capacity slipped into 2026?

Sources

U.S. Energy Information Administration, “New U.S. electric generating capacity expected to reach a record high in 2026,” Today in Energy, Feb. 20, 2026. eia.gov
U.S. Energy Information Administration, “Solar, battery storage to lead new U.S. generating capacity additions in 2025,” Today in Energy, Feb. 24, 2025. eia.gov

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