US offshore wind faced major setbacks in 2023-2024 with multiple project cancellations (Ørsted Ocean Wind, Avangrid Park City, others) over cost overruns and PPA mismatches. By Q1 2026, 4 GW operational (Vineyard Wind 1, South Fork, Revolution Wind partial), 5 GW under construction. New project rebids at $130-160/MWh tariffs. This deep-dive covers what got cancelled and why, the rebuild mechanism, supply chain + political risks, and the realistic 2030 outlook.
RE+ 2026 runs September 8–11 in Las Vegas, the largest North American renewable energy event with 50,000+ expected attendees. After Treasury's tightened IRA domestic-content rules, the show's central question: which module + inverter + BESS suppliers can actually deliver US-cell, US-content solutions at scale by 2028.
Data center electricity demand grew 12% in 2025 driven by AI workloads. Hyperscalers (Google, Microsoft, AWS, Meta) committed to 24/7 carbon-free energy by 2030 but face a firmness problem — solar+wind alone can't deliver continuous match. Solutions emerging: long-duration storage, geothermal contracts, nuclear PPAs, hourly carbon-matched procurement. This deep-dive covers the demand surge, the 24/7 CFE challenge, the nuclear pivot, and what it means for the renewable industry.
Microinverters retain 18% of US residential inverter shipments and lower shares in Europe and India. Enphase dominates with 90%+ US share. The technology wins on shading tolerance, partial-string failures, and rapid shutdown compliance — but the per-watt premium of 15–25% limits adoption to specific use cases.
4-hour BESS dominates new utility-scale storage at 78% of 2026 installations. 8-hour systems remain niche at 12% — economic only in specific market conditions: high evening peak prices, regulated capacity markets, or grid-forming requirements. Long-duration's promised growth is real but slower than 2023 forecasts.
California Independent System Operator (CAISO) crossed 15 GW of operational battery storage in Q2 2026 — up from 11 GW one year ago. Storage now supplies 18% of evening peak load on summer days. Market structure has caught up: BESS resources earn from energy, ancillary services, and resource adequacy concurrently.
Treasury's January 2026 final rules on the IRA's 10% domestic-content adder tightened cell-eligibility tests. To qualify, modules must use US-manufactured cells (not just assembled-in-US modules with imported cells) by January 2028. Mexico-assembled modules with Chinese cells no longer qualify.
Battery energy storage deployed as a transmission alternative — relieving congestion or deferring substation upgrades — is gaining regulatory acceptance in CAISO, ERCOT, and PJM. Where BESS can substitute for transmission investment, project economics often dominate wires-only alternatives by 30–60% over 20-year planning horizons.