Renewables easily cover changes in US demand, which is rising by 2% in 2026. The largest US offshore wind farm will come online this year, but the technology's future here is cloudy. Normally, we try to update you quarterly on what’s going on with the US electric grid since it provides a nice view of developing trends and smooths out some month-to-month randomness. Unfortunately, I was out of the office when last month’s data was released, so this will be a seven-month update on 2026 trends.

The top line item is that energy use is continuing to rise, albeit not as quickly as headlines about data centers might lead people to believe. Beyond data centers, there’s a growing electrification—things like EVs and heat pumps—that is shifting energy demands onto the grid. Despite all of this, electricity use has risen by only 2 percent compared to the same period last year. At this time the previous year, demand had risen by 3 percent compared to the year prior.

The other big story in recent years has been the explosive growth of solar power. Through September 2026, solar generated 48 terawatt-hours more than it had the year before. That’s still good for a growth rate of 22 percent, but it’s a considerable drop-off at a time when demand is growing. Combined with utility-scale generation, solar produced 72 percent as much electricity as coal over the first seven months of 2026.

Through the first seven months of 2026, wind and solar now cover 21 percent of US electricity demand, and their growth meant that increased use of electricity could be met entirely by renewable sources. Adding in hydro means that renewables now cover 27 percent of demand, and with nuclear, the US covers 45 percent of its electricity use with non-carbon-emitting sources.