US utilities and power plant developers added about 12 GW of new generation resources between January and April of 2025, compared to 11 GW over the same period last year, according to the latest monthly infrastructure report from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). The vast majority of that generation — some 9.5 GW — was solar, trailed by wind with 2 GW, and 500 MW of gas.
High-probability additions by April 2028 include 90 GW of solar, 23 GW of wind, and 19.5 GW of gas, according to the report. It also projected the likely addition of 631 MW of hydropower and 92 MW of geothermal steam.
The report showed the continued dominance of solar in new generation capacity amid robust demand growth projections. That could change, however, as the law signed by the US president on July 4, 2025, dramatically cut incentives for wind and solar, phasing out tax credits and imposing restrictions on the types of projects that qualify. This was followed by an executive order instructing the Treasury Department to take a narrow approach in its interpretation of the law regarding wind and solar.
On the transmission front, as per FERC’s report, the US added 62.5 miles (101 km) of transmission lines from January to April 2025 – 10.9 miles (18 km) of less than or equal to 230 kV lines, 49.8 miles (80 km) of 345 kV lines, and most recently, Entergy Louisiana’s 1.8-mile (3-km), 500 kV Wise-Bayou Labutte transmission project. – part of the Amite South Reliability Project. The new 500 kV, 80-mile (129-km) transmission line was constructed between Bayou Labutte and Churchill, and is part of Entergy’s long-term transmission plan. The project also involved upgrades at both the Bayou Labutte and Churchill substations, including adding breakers and other equipment.
The FERC report did not include a breakdown of transmission built over the same period last year. In total, grid operators added nearly 1,700 miles (2,736 km) of transmission in 2024, about a third of it (554 miles or 892 km) being 500 kV.
The proposed transmission projects in-service by September 2027, with a high probability of completion include a total of 2,356.7 miles (3,792.7 km) divided between 1,212.6 miles (1,951 km) of less than or equal to 230 kV lines, 999.1 miles (1,608 km) of 345 kV lines, and 145 miles (233 km) of 500 kV lines.
FERC’s report follows a separate analysis from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), which estimated that by the summer of 2026, solar generation would grow by another 19 per cent to 147 billion kWh. While the curtailment of clean energy tax credits is expected to slow solar deployment, alternatives like gas, which are favored by the current administration, face their own challenges, including high fuel prices and a year-long backlog for new gas turbines.
The FERC report also projected 24 GW of coal retirements and 14 GW of gas retirements through 2028.