May 21 (Reuters) – U.S. energy storage developers installed 9.7 gigawatt-hours of new capacity in the first quarter of 2026, marking a record high for the quarter, an industry report showed on Thursday.
Energy storage capacity grew 32% in the quarter from a year ago despite federal actions the industry says are slowing clean energy development, the report by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and Benchmark Mineral Intelligence said.
The SEIA said the demand is being driven by data centers, volatile electricity prices and disruptions to global gas and gas turbine supplies.
Major technology companies, including Google and Meta, have announced deals this year to procure tens of thousands of megawatt-hours of storage to power data centers needed to run AI technologies.
HURDLES FOR CLEAN ENERGY
The solar industry faces tariff pressures and a freeze on approvals for major projects under the Trump administration, as part of an agenda focused on oil, gas, coal and nuclear energy.
The report showed that 467 solar and storage projects have permits pending and could face delays or cancellations.
“If federal permitting bottlenecks persist, household electric bills will continue to rise and China will surge further ahead in the race for AI leadership,” the report said.
The report estimates more than 610 GWh of storage additions by 2030.
“Energy storage’s remarkable first quarter only underscores the fundamental values of this technology,” said Darren Van’t Hof, SEIA’s interim president and chief executive.
Adequate energy storage can shield consumers from fuel price shocks, help lower electricity costs and strengthen grid reliability, he said.
Texas, Arizona and California led utility-scale installations in the quarter. Over 70% of utility-scale storage capacity installed in the period was in states won by U.S. President Donald Trump.
Utility-scale projects accounted for 7.8 GWh of first-quarter installations; commercial and industrial systems added 648 megawatt-hours and residential systems added 515 MWh.
(Reporting by Pranav Mathur in Bengaluru; Editing by Sahal Muhammed)
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