The U.S. solar industry risks losing 44 GW in new capacity additions by 2030 as a result of the Trump administration’s policies, the local industry association has warned.
In a report hailing the installation of close to 18 GW in new capacity—including battery storage—over the first half of the year, which constituted 82% of all new capacity additions, the Solar Energy Industries Association also warned that the One Big Beautiful Bill Act has substantially changed the medium-term outlook.
“Solar and storage are the backbone of America’s energy future, delivering the majority of new power to the grid at the lowest cost to families and businesses,” SEIA president and CEO Abigail Ross Hopper said.
“Instead of unleashing this American economic engine, the Trump administration is deliberately stifling investment, which is raising energy costs for families and businesses, and jeopardizing the reliability of our electric grid,” she added.
The statement comes soon after a report by Reuters noting that power generation developers were betting on natural gas, hydro, and nuclear to supply reliable, meaning dispatchable, electricity to U.S. consumers as opposed to solar and wind, which are intermittent generators.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act contains stipulations about a deadline for subsidies for new wind and solar capacity. This caused a wave of criticism from the solar industry despite claims for years that solar did not need subsidies to survive and grow. Indeed, SEIA’s Ross Hopper added in her statement from today that “no matter what policies this administration releases, the solar and storage industry will continue to grow, because the market is demanding what we’re delivering: reliable, affordable, American-made energy.”
The presence of strong market demand should offset the effect of any federal policies with regard to financial incentives and the solar industry now has the chance to prove it can, indeed, survive and thrive even without subsidies.
By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com
