Our annual report on electricity generation capacity in the United States breaks down the current and imminent generation of electricity by type of fuel, location, and ownership type. The report also looks at retirements, planned retirements, and cancellations since 2017.
The United States has nearly 1.4 terawatts of generation capacity, with an additional 494,823 megawatts in development. An additional 47,985 MW of supplemental energy storage is also in operation on the U.S. electric grid. The largest fuel source for the current capacity is natural gas (42%), followed by coal (14%). Solar, wind, nuclear, and hydro together account for nearly 40% of capacity.
For the fifth year in a row, solar was the source with the most capacity added, with nearly 30,000 MW of solar capacity coming online in 2025. Compared to 2024, natural gas capacity under development increased 62% in 2025. Over 18,000 MW of storage were added in 2025, and another 23,800 MW are projected to come online in 2026. Nearly 80% of the capacity that is most likely to come online, permitted plants and plants that are under construction, are in solar and wind.
Capacity additions (43,412 MW) outpace the total capacity retired (5,495 MW) in 2025. A majority (63%) of the capacity retired in 2025 was coal-fired facilities, though less coal was retired in 2025 (3,458 MW) than in 2024 (3,542 MW). Another 75,000 MW of capacity is on track to retire by 2030.