The rate of clean energy deployment in the USA slowed in the second quarter as policy headwinds, economic factors facing the industry, and trade issues have impacted project development and increased the backlog of new project delays, according to ACP’s Clean Power Quarterly Market Report Q2 2022.
During the second quarter, the industry saw a 55 percent decline in project installations from the same period in 2021, with 3,188MW of utility-scale clean power capacity installed. This makes the second quarter the lowest quarter for clean energy capacity additions since the third quarter of 2019.
Additional market headwinds impacting the rate of development include commodity prices, COVID pandemic-related delays, supply chain issues, and increased operating costs.
Energy storage was the only technology to experience growth, with a 13 percent increase in installations. Solar installations were down 53 percent compared to the same quarter in 2021. Concerningly, onshore wind installations were 78 percent lower when compared to the same time period last year.
Energy storage was the only technology to experience growth, with a 13 percent increase in installations. Solar installations were down 53 percent compared to the same quarter in 2021. Concerningly, onshore wind installations were 78 percent lower when compared to the same time period last year.
Project developers brought 60 new projects online to the grid in the second quarter, representing $4.3 billion in capital investments. The industry installed 3,188 MW of new capacity from 41 solar projects, 14 storage projects, and 5 wind projects across 27 states. Total installations for the year are now 9,795 MW, compared to more than 13,000 MW of projects brought online in the first half of 2021.
The total operating clean power capacity in the country is now over 211GW.