EV Boom Unexpectedly Benefits All Electricity Customers

U.S. Clean Energy Transition accelerates with IRA and BIL, boosting renewable energy, solar PV, battery storage, EV adoption, manufacturing, grid resilience, and jobs while targeting carbon-free electricity by 2035 and net-zero emissions by 2050.

Key Points

U.S. shift to renewables under IRA and BIL scales solar, storage, and EVs toward carbon-free power by 2035.

✅ Renewables reached ~22% of U.S. electricity generation in 2022.

✅ Nearly $13b in PV manufacturing; 94 plants; 25k jobs announced.

✅ Battery storage grew from 3% in 2017 to 36% by H1 2023.

In recent years, the United States has made remarkable strides in embracing renewable energy, with notable solar and wind growth helping to position itself for a more sustainable future. This transition has been driven by a combination of factors, including environmental concerns, economic opportunities, and technological advancements.

With the introduction of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), the United States is rapidly advancing its journey towards clean energy solutions.

To underscore the extent of this progress, consider the following vital statistics: In 2022, renewable energy sources (including hydroelectric power) accounted for approximately 22% of the nation's electricity generation, and renewables surpassed coal in the mix that year, while the share of renewables in total electricity generation capacity had risen to around 30% and the nation is moving toward 30% electricity from wind and solar as well.

Notably, in the transportation sector, consumers are increasingly embracing zero-emission fuels, such as electric vehicles. In 2022, battery electric vehicles (BEVs) represented 5.6% of new vehicle registrations, surging to 7.1% by the first half of 2023, according to estimates from EUPD Research.

The United States has set ambitious targets, including achieving 100% carbon pollution-free electricity by 2035 and aiming for economy-wide net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by no later than 2050, and policy proposals such as Biden's solar plan reinforce these goals for the power sector. These targets are poised to provide a significant boost to the clean energy sector in the country, reaffirming its commitment to a sustainable and environmentally responsible future.

IRA and BIL: Catalysts for Growth

The IRA and BIL represent a transformative shift in the landscape of clean energy policy, heralding a new era for the solar and energy storage sectors in the United States. The IRA allocates substantial resources to address the climate crisis, fortify domestic clean energy production, and solidify the U.S. as a global leader in clean energy manufacturing.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), an impressive investment exceeding $120 billion has been announced for the U.S. battery manufacturing and supply chain sector since the introduction of IRA and BIL. Additionally, plans have been unveiled for over 200 new or expanded facilities dedicated to minerals, materials processing, and manufacturing. This move is expected to create more than 75,000 potential job opportunities, strengthening the nation's workforce.

Following the introduction of IRA and BIL, solar photovoltaic (PV) manufacturing in the U.S. has also witnessed a substantial surge in planned investments, totaling nearly $13 billion, as reported by the DOE. Furthermore, a total of 94 new and expanded PV manufacturing plants have been announced, potentially generating over 25,000 jobs in the country.

Booming Solar Sector

In recent years, the U.S. solar sector has outpaced other energy sources, including a surging wind sector and natural gas, in terms of capacity growth. EUPD Research estimates reveal a notable upward trend in the contribution of solar capacity to annual power capacity additions, as 82% of the 2023 pipeline consists of wind, solar, and batteries across utility-scale projects. This trajectory has risen from 37% in 2019 to 38% in 2020, further increasing to 44% in 2021 and an impressive 45% in 2022.

Although the country experienced a temporary setback in 2022 due to pandemic-related delays, trade law enforcement, supply chain disruptions, and rising costs, it is now on track to make a historic addition to its PV capacity in 2023. According to EUPD Research's 2023 forecast, the U.S. is poised to achieve its largest-ever expansion in PV capacity, estimated at 32 to 35 GWdc, assuming the installation of all planned utility-scale capacity, and solar generation rose 25% in 2022 as a supportive indicator. Additionally, from 2023 to 2028, the U.S. is projected to add approximately 233 GWdc of PV capacity.

In terms of cumulative installed PV capacity (including utility-scale, commercial and industrial, and residential) on a state-by-state basis, California holds the top position, followed by Texas, Florida, North Carolina, and Arizona. Remarkably, Texas is rapidly expanding its utility-scale PV capacity and may potentially surpass California in the next two years.

Rapid Growth in Battery Storage

Battery energy storage has emerged as the dominant and rapidly expanding source of energy storage in the U.S. in recent years. The proportion of battery storage in the country's energy storage capacity has surged dramatically, increasing from a mere 3% in 2017 to a substantial 36% in the first half of 2023.

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UK Wind Power Leadership in 2020 highlights record renewable energy growth, G20-leading wind share, rapid coal phase-out, and rising solar integration, advancing decarbonization targets under the Paris Agreement and momentum ahead of COP26.

Key Points

The UK led the G20 in wind power share in 2020, displacing coal, expanding solar, and cutting power-sector emissions.

✅ G20-leading wind share; second for combined wind and solar

✅ Fastest coal decline among G20 from 2015 to 2020

✅ Emissions risk rising as post-pandemic demand returns

Nearly a quarter of the UK’s electricity came from wind turbines in 2020 – making the country the leader among the G20 for share of power sourced from the renewable energy, a new analysis finds.

The UK also moved away from coal power at a faster rate than any other G20 country from 2015 to 2020, according to the results.

And it ranked second in the G20, behind Germany, for the proportion of electricity sourced from both wind and solar in 2020, after first surpassing coal in 2016.

“It’s crazy how much wind power has grown in the UK and how much it has offset coal, and how it’s starting to eat at gas,” Dave Jones, Ember’s global lead analyst, told The Independent.

But it is important to bear in mind that “we’re only doing a great job by the standards of the rest of the world”, he added, noting that low-carbon generation stalled in 2019 in the UK.

Ember’s Global Electricity Review notes that the world’s power sector emissions were two per cent higher in 2020 than in 2015 – the year that countries agreed to slash their greenhouse gas pollution as part of the Paris Agreement.

Power generated from coal fell by a record amount from 2019 to 2020, the analysis finds. However, this decline was greatly facilitated by lockdowns introduced to stop the spread of Covid-19, as global electricity demand was temporarily stifled before rebounding, the analysts say.

Coal is the most polluting of the fossil fuels. The UK government hopes to convince all countries to stop building new coal-fired power stations at Cop26, a climate conference that is to be held in Glasgow later this year.

UN chief Antonio Guterres has also called for all countries to end their “deadly addiction to coal”.

At a summit held earlier this month, he described ending the use of coal in electricity generation as the “single most important step” to meeting the Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting global warming to well below 2C above pre-industrial levels by 2100.

“There is definitely a concern that, in the pandemic year of 2020, coal hasn’t fallen as fast as it needed to,” said Mr Jones, even as the UK set coal-free power records recently.

“There is concern that, once electricity demand returns, we won’t be seeing that decline in coal anymore.”

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Canada Clean Electricity Procurement advances federal operations with renewable energy in Alberta, leveraging RECs, competitive sourcing, Indigenous participation, and grid decarbonization to cut greenhouse gas emissions and stimulate new clean power infrastructure.

Key Points

A plan to procure clean power and RECs, cutting emissions in Alberta and attributing use where renewables are absent.

✅ RFPs to source new clean electricity in Alberta

✅ RECs from net new Canadian renewable generation

✅ Mandatory Indigenous participation via equity or set-asides

Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) is taking concrete steps to meet the Government of Canada's commitment in the Greening Government Strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from federal government buildings, vehicle fleets and other operations, aligning with broader vehicle electrification trends across Canada.

The Honourable Anita Anand, Minister of Public Services and Procurement, announced the Government of Canada has launched Requests for Proposal to buy new clean electricity in the province of Alberta, which is moving ahead with the retirement of coal power to clean its grid, to power federal operations there.

As well, Canada will purchase Renewable Energy Certificates (REC) from new clean energy generation in Canada. This will enable Canada to attribute its energy consumption as clean in regions where new clean renewable sources are not yet available. The Government of Canada is excited about this opportunity to stimulate net new Canadian clean electricity generation through the procurement of RECs and complementary power purchase agreements that secure long-term supply for federal demand.

Together, these contracts will help to ensure Canada is reducing its greenhouse gas footprint by approximately 133 kilotonnes or 56% of total real property emissions in Alberta. Additionally, the contracts will displace approximately 41 kilotonnes of greenhouse gas emissions from electricity use in the rest of Canada, supporting progress toward 2035 clean electricity goals even as challenges remain.

Through these open, fair and transparent competitive procurement processes, PSPC will be a key purchaser of clean electricity and will support the growth of new clean electricity and renewable power infrastructure, such as recent turbine investments in Manitoba that expand capacity.

The Government of Canada's Clean Electricity Initiative plans to use 100% clean electricity by 2022, where available, in alignment with evolving net-zero electricity regulations that shape supply choices, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and stimulate growth in clean renewable power infrastructure. PSPC has applied the goals of the Government of Canada's Clean Electricity Initiative to its specific requirement for net new clean electricity generation to power federal operations in Alberta.  

These procurements will support economic opportunities for Indigenous businesses by encouraging participation in the move towards clean energy, seen in provincial shifts toward clean power in Ontario that broaden markets. Each Request for Proposal incorporates mandatory requirements for Indigenous participation through equity holdings or set-asides under the Procurement Strategy for Aboriginal Business.

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The Netherlands grid crisis exposes how rapid renewable energy growth is straining transmission capacity. Solar, wind, and electric vehicle demand are overloading networks, forcing officials to urge reduced peak-time power use and accelerate national grid modernization plans.

Main Points

The Netherlands grid crisis refers to national electricity congestion caused by surging renewable energy generation and rising consumer demand.

✅ Grid congestion from rapid solar and wind expansion

✅ Strained transmission and distribution capacity

✅ National investment in smart grid upgrades

The Dutch government is urging households to reduce electricity consumption between 16:00 and 21:00 — a signal that the country’s once-stable power grid is under serious stress. The call comes amid an accelerating shift to wind and solar power that is overwhelming transmission infrastructure and creating “grid congestion” across regions, as seen in Nordic grid constraints this year.

In a government television campaign, a narrator warns: “When everyone uses electricity at the same time, our power grid can become overloaded. That could lead to failures — so please try to use less electricity between 4 pm and 9 pm.” The plea reflects a system where supply occasionally outpaces the grid’s ability to distribute it, with some regions abroad issuing summer blackout warnings already.

According to Dutch energy firm Eneco’s CEO, Kys-Jan Lamo, the root of the problem lies in the mismatch between modern renewable generation and a grid built for centralized fossil fuel plants. He notes that 70% of Eneco’s output already comes from solar and wind, and this “grid congestion is like traffic on the power lines.” Lamo explains:

“The grid congestion is caused by too much demand in some areas of the network, or by too much supply being pushed into the grid beyond what the network can carry.”

He adds that many of the transmission lines in residential areas are narrow — a legacy of when fewer and larger power plants fed electricity through major feeder lines, underscoring grid vulnerabilities seen elsewhere today. Under the new model, renewable generation occurs everywhere: “This means that electricity is now fed into the grid even in peripheral areas with relatively fine lines — and those lines cannot always cope.”

Experts warn that resolving these issues will demand years of planning and immense investment in smarter grid infrastructure over the coming years. Damien Ernst, an electrical engineering professor at Liège University and respected voice on European grids, states that the Netherlands is experiencing a “grid crisis” brought on by “insufficient investment in distribution and transmission networks.” He emphasizes that the speed of renewable deployment has outpaced the grid’s capacity to absorb it.

Eneco operates a “virtual power plant” control system — described by Lamo as “the brain we run” — that dynamically balances supply and demand. During periods of oversupply, the system can curtail wind turbines or shut down solar panels. Conversely, during peak demand, the system can throttle back electricity provision to participating customers in exchange for lower tariffs. However, these techniques only mitigate strain — they cannot replace the need for physical upgrades or bolster resilience to extreme weather outages alone.

The bottleneck has begun limiting new connections: “Consumers often want to install heat pumps or charge electric vehicles, but they increasingly find it difficult to get the necessary network capacity,” Lamo warns. Businesses too are struggling. “Companies often want to expand operations, but cannot get additional capacity from grid operators. Even new housing developments are affected, since there’s insufficient infrastructure to connect whole communities.”

Currently, thousands of businesses are queuing for network access. TenneT, the national grid operator, estimates that 8,000 firms await initial connection approval, and another 12,000 seek to increase their capacity allocations. Stakeholders warn that unresolved congestion risks choking economic growth.

According to Kys-Jan Lamo: “Looking back, almost all of this could have been prevented.” He acknowledges that post-2015 climate commitments placed heavy emphasis on adding generation and on grid modernization costs more broadly, but “we somewhat underestimated the impact on grid capacity.”

In response, the government has introduced a national “Grid Congestion Action Plan,” aiming to accelerate approvals for infrastructure expansions and to refine regulations to promote smarter grid use. At the same time, feed-in incentives for solar power are being scaled back in some regions, and certain areas may even impose charges to integrate new solar systems into the grid.

The scale of what’s needed is vast. TenneT has proposed adding roughly 100,000 km of new power lines by 2050 and investing in doubling or tripling existing capacity in many areas. However, permit processes can take eight years before construction begins, and many projects require an additional two years to complete. As Lamo points out, “the pace of energy transition far exceeds the grid’s existing capacity — and every new connection request simply extends waiting lists.”

Unless grid expansion keeps up, and as climate pressures intensify, the very clean energy future the Netherlands is striving for may remain constrained by the physics of distribution.

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Canada Renewable Power sees Prairie Provinces surge as Canada Energy Regulator projects rising wind, solar, and hydro capacity in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba, replacing coal, expanding the grid, and lowering emissions through 2023.

Key Points

A CER outlook on Canada's grid: Prairie wind, solar, and hydro growth replacing coal and cutting emissions by 2023.

✅ Prairie wind, solar capacity surge by 2023

✅ Alberta, Saskatchewan shift from coal to renewables, gas

✅ Manitoba strengthens hydro leadership, low-carbon grid

Canada's Prairie Provinces will lead the country's growth in renewable energy capacity over the next three years, says a new report by the Canada Energy Regulator (CER).

The online report, titled Canada's Renewable Power, says decreased reliance on coal and substantial increases in wind and solar capacity will increase the amount of renewable energy added to the grid in Alberta and Saskatchewan. Meanwhile, Manitoba will strengthen its position as a prominent hydro producer in Canada. The pace of overall renewable energy growth is expected to slow at the national level between 2021 and 2023, in part due to lagging solar demand in some markets, but with strong growth in provinces with a large reliance on fossil fuel generation.

The report explores electricity generation in Canada and provides a short-term outlook for renewable electricity capacity in each province and territory to 2023. It also features a series of interactive visuals that allow for comparison between regions and highlights the diversity of electricity sources across Canada.

Electricity generation from renewable sources is expected to continue increasing as demand for electricity grows and the country continues its transition to a lower-carbon economy. Canada will see gradual declines in overall carbon emissions from electricity generation largely due to Saskatchewan, Alberta, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick replacing coal with renewables and natural gas. The pace of growth beyond 2023 in renewable power will depend on technological developments; consumer preferences; and government policies and programs.

Canada is a world leader in renewable power, generating almost two-thirds of its electricity from renewables with hydro as the dominant source, and the country ranks in the top 10 for hydropower jobs worldwide. Canada also has one of the world's lowest carbon intensities for electricity.

The CER produces neutral and fact-based energy analysis to inform the energy conversation in Canada. This report is part of a portfolio of publications on energy supply, demand and infrastructure that the CER publishes regularly as part of its ongoing market monitoring.

Report highlights

• Wind capacity in Saskatchewan is projected to triple and nearly double in Alberta between 2020 and 2023 as wind power becomes more competitive in the market. Significant solar capacity growth is also projected, with Alberta adding 1,200 MW by 2023, as Canada approaches a 5 GW solar milestone by that time.
• In Alberta, the share of renewables in the capacity mix is expected to increase from 16% in 2017 to 26% by 2023, with a renewable energy surge supporting thousands of jobs. Similarly, Saskatchewan's renewable share of capacity is expected to increase from 25% in 2018 to 33% in 2023.
• Renewable capacity growth slows most notably in Ontario, where policy changes have scaled back growth projections. Between 2010 and 2017, renewable capacity grew 6.8% per year. Between 2018 and 2023, growth in Ontario slows to 0.4% per year as capacity grows by 466 MW over this period.
• New large-scale hydro, wind, and solar projects will push the share of renewables in Canada's electricity mix from 67% of installed capacity in 2017 to 71% in 2023.
• Hydro is the dominant source of electricity in Canada accounting for 55% of total installed capacity and 59% of generation, though Alberta's limited hydro stands as a notable exception, with B.C., Manitoba, Quebec, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Yukon deriving more than 90% of their power from hydro.
• The jurisdictions with the highest percentage of non-hydro renewable electricity generation are PEI (100%), Nova Scotia (15.8%), and Ontario (10.5%).
• In 2010, 62.8% of Canada's total electricity generation (364 681 GW‧h) was from renewable sources. By 2018, 66.2% (425 722 GW‧h) was from renewable sources and projected to be 71.0% by 2023.

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US Renewable Energy Cost Advantage signals cheaper utility-scale solar and onshore wind versus natural gas, with LCOE declines, tax credits, and climate policy cutting electricity costs for utilities and grids across the United States.

Key Points

Cheaper solar and wind than natural gas, driven by LCOE drops, tax credits, and policy, lowering US electricity costs.

✅ Utility-scale solar is about one-third cheaper than gas

✅ Onshore wind costs roughly 44 percent less than natural gas

✅ Policy and tax credits accelerate renewables and cut power prices

Natural gas’s dominance as power-plant fuel in the US is fading fast as the cost of electricity generated by US wind and solar projects tumbles and as wind and solar surpass coal in the generation mix, according to Guggenheim Securities.

Utility-scale solar is now about a third cheaper than gas-fired power, while onshore wind is about 44% less expensive, Guggenheim analysts led by Shahriar Pourreza said Monday in a note to clients, a dynamic consistent with falling wholesale power prices in several markets today. 

“Solar and wind now present a deflationary opportunity for electric supply costs,” the analysts said, which “supports the case for economic deployment of renewables across the US,” as the country moves toward 30% wind and solar and one-fourth of total generation in the near term.

Gas prices have surged amid a global supply crunch after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, while tax-credit extensions and sweeping US climate legislation have brought down the cost of wind and solar, even as renewables surpassed coal in 2022 nationwide. Renewables-heavy utilities like NextEra Energy Inc. and Allete Inc. stand to benefit, and companies that can boost spending on wind and solar, as wind, solar and batteries dominate the 2023 pipeline, will also see faster growth, Guggenheim said.
 

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