The U.S. energy storage industry installed 9.7 gigawatt-hours of new capacity in the first quarter of 2026, the strongest first quarter in the sector’s history.
According to the U.S. Energy Storage Market Outlook Q2 2026 (ESMO) released May 21 by the Solar Energy Industries Association and Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, energy storage installations in Q1 were up 32% year-over-year despite actions in Washington targeting clean energy.
Over 610 GWh of energy storage is now expected to be installed by 2030, up from previous projections.
"As investors, developers, and grid operators respond to energy price volatility tied to disrupted global gas and gas turbine supplies, solar and storage are becoming increasingly attractive because they are insulated from fuel price swings and increasingly made in America," SEIA said.
Data centers are driving demand growth, with Google, Meta and other tech companies announcing deals to procure tens-of-thousands of megawatt-hours of energy storage so far this year. "The surging deployment of energy storage will help meet demand and keep energy costs down, while enhancing the reliability of the grid and fortifying American energy security," SEIA said.
"However, if federal permitting bottlenecks persist, household electric bills will continue to rise and China will surge further ahead in the race for AI leadership. SEIA analysis shows that 467 solar and storage projects have permits pending and are vulnerable to politically-motivated delays or cancellations," it added.
Texas, Arizona and California led the nation in utility-scale battery storage capacity in Q1, maintaining their positions as the three largest energy storage markets in America.
Thirteen states now have explicit energy storage targets, helping drive continued investment and deployment. States like Georgia, Iowa, and Mississippi also posted notable gains in installed storage capacity during the quarter.
In Q1, 7.8 GWh of utility-scale storage was installed in the United States. 648 MWh of commercial and industrial (C&I) storage was installed, and 515 MWh of residential storage was installed.
