The Trump administration’s aggressive campaign against renewable energy in 2025 created significant policy turbulence, but failed to halt the fundamental economic advantages driving a solar and storage revolution that accounted for 85% of new grid power.
The year 2025 marked a dramatic showdown between federal energy policy and market realities as the Trump administration launched an unprecedented assault on renewable energy while simultaneously facing skyrocketing electricity demand from data centers and AI infrastructure.
Despite President Trump’s frequent characterization of wind and solar as “the scam of the century” and sweeping policy changes that rolled back subsidies, clean energy technologies—particularly solar and battery storage—demonstrated remarkable resilience. According to research firm Wood Mackenzie, these technologies accounted for 85% of new power added to the U.S. grid in the first nine months of 2025.
Policy Whiplash and Market Response
The Republican tax and spending cut bill passed in July 2025 dramatically reversed or curtailed clean energy programs established through the Democrats’ flagship climate and health care bill in 2022. This legislative shift reshaped the economics of clean energy projects and forced developers to reassess their strategies for acquiring parts and materials.
The federal government canceled grants for hundreds of projects and actively worked to boost polluting fuels while blocking wind and solar development. The administration stopped construction on major offshore wind farms, revoked wind energy permits, paused permitting processes, canceled plans to use large areas of federal waters for new offshore wind development, and terminated federal funding for offshore wind projects.
Solar and Storage: The Unstoppable Force
Despite these headwinds, solar and storage technologies continued their rapid deployment. Industry leaders attribute this resilience to three key factors:
- Strong economic fundamentals that remain competitive even without subsidies
- Unprecedented demand from both corporate and residential sectors
- Rapid deployment capabilities that allow projects to come online quickly
Jorge Vargas, cofounder and CEO of solar builder and operator Aspen Power, noted that while 2025 was “a very tough year for clean energy” with a noticeable “cooldown effect,” the industry remains fundamentally resilient.
Nuclear and Geothermal Gain Unexpected Support
In a surprising twist, nuclear power emerged as a rare area of bipartisan agreement. Both Democrats and Republicans supported investments to keep nuclear reactors online, restart previously closed reactors, and deploy new advanced reactor designs. The Energy Department is loaning $1 billion to help finance the restart of the Three Mile Island plant in Pennsylvania, site of the nation’s worst commercial nuclear power accident in 1979.
Geothermal energy also maintained administration support, with the tax bill largely preserving geothermal tax credits. The Geothermal Rising association reported that 2025 represented a breakthrough year as technologies continued to mature and produce.
Offshore Wind Suffers Major Setbacks
While solar and storage thrived, the offshore wind industry experienced what Joey Lange, a senior managing director at global sustainability advisory firm Trio, described as a “grinding halt” to momentum just as the industry was gaining traction. The administration’s aggressive actions effectively decimated projects, developers, and technology innovators in the offshore wind sector.
Eric Fischgrund, founder and CEO of FischTank PR, noted that “no one in wind is raising or spending capital” following the policy changes. Despite these setbacks, Fischgrund maintains optimism about long-term prospects, noting that “the world is transitioning to cleaner energy.”
The Data Center Demand Factor
A critical driver behind the continued clean energy expansion has been the skyrocketing demand for electricity to power data centers supporting artificial intelligence and cloud computing. This demand is creating what Hillary Bright, executive director of offshore wind advocacy group Turn Forward, describes as a fundamental shift in “the political calculus that drove the administration’s early policy decisions around renewables.”
Former Democratic Senator Mary Landrieu, now with Natural Allies for a Clean Energy Future, emphasized that “an energy strategy with a diverse mix of sources is the only way forward as demand grows from data centers and other sources, and as people demand affordable, reliable electricity.”
Looking Toward 2026
Industry experts expect solar and battery storage to continue their growth trajectory in 2026 due to their ability to add substantial power to the grid quickly and cost-effectively. Amanda Levin, policy analysis director at the Natural Resources Defense Council, stated that “the market will continue to ensure that most new electricity is renewable.”
Sean Finnerty, CEO of BlueWave, predicts that states feeling pressure to deliver affordable, reliable electricity will increasingly drive clean energy momentum in 2026 by streamlining permitting processes, improving grid connection procedures, and reducing costs associated with permits and fees.
The fundamental value proposition of clean energy remains intact despite the policy turbulence. As Lunar Energy’s vice president for revenue Ed Gunn noted, “The fundamentals are unchanged—there is massive value in clean energy.”
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