Going Red, Blue and Purple for Decarbonizing Energy: Diverse States Go All-In for Solar, Storage and Distributed
Key Highlights
- California approved $136 million for decarbonization and climate tech investments, maintaining its leadership in solar and energy storage projects despite federal policy rollbacks.
- Michigan's renewable capacity is projected to reach 17.8 GW by 2030, with significant growth in wind and solar, driven by revamped state energy laws and increasing utility investments.
- Texas leads the nation in utility-scale wind and battery storage, with capacity growing by over 4,100% in four years, supported by low regulation and land availability.
Renewable energy support at the federal level may be facing an aggressive backlash from the Trump Administration, but several large states—some of which helped elect the president—are still embracing solar, wind and energy storage.
California, Michigan and Texas recently touted their major expansions in alternative energy projects. These come despite moves by the Trump Administration to end federal tax incentives for clean energy projects and terminate previously approved funding for renewable, carbon capture and other decarbonization works.
The renewable energy drive in California is hardly a surprise, but the scope of funding remains impressive.
“While Trump bets on the past, California is building the future,” said Gov. Gavin Newsom in a statement within the report by the California Energy Commission (CEC). “Regressive energy policy may play well on Fox News, but it’s plain bad economics. Today it costs more to run a dirty fossil fuel power plant than to build a brand-new clean energy facility.
“The markets know where the future is headed — and so do we,” the California governor added. “Clean, green, reliable power—that’s California’s bet, and we’re already winning it.”
Last week, the CEC approved $136 million new decarbonizing energy and climate technology investments. The state is first nationwide in solar installations and working on other projects involving utility-scale battery storage, hydrogen and microgrids.
California, of course, is among the bluest of blue states and rejected Trump three times in presidential elections. Michigan, however, is more reddish purple and voted for Trump two out of three times, in the 2016 and 2024 races.
Even so, Michigan is proving to be open to renewable and distributed energy resource programs. The state’s Public Service Commission (MPSC) has reported on the continued growth of renewable and DER projects.
The MPSC’s Status of Renewable Energy, Distributed Generation, and Legacy Net Metering in Michigan report finds that electric utilities regulated by the MPSC had more than 7,500 MW (7.5 GW) of renewable capacity at the end of 2024 and more than 8,300 MW expected by the end of 2025, based on contracts approved by the Commission. Utilities added 1,698 MW of renewable energy in 2024, an increase of 28.9% over the 5882 MW of renewable capacity that was online at the end of 2023.
That figure is expected to reach 17,800 MW by 2030 as renewable energy expands to meet the standards set in Michigan’s energy laws revamped in 2023, according to the MPSC report. The amount of renewable generation in service statewide will exceed that number because utilities not regulated by the MPSC aren’t required to submit renewable energy contracts to the Commission.
Wind continues to be the largest source of renewable energy in Michigan, accounting for 67% of renewable generation. Solar generation continues to grow rapidly in Michigan, accounting for 18% of renewable generation in 2023, the report found.
Michigan’s electric providers were required to meet a 15% renewable portfolio standard by 2021. With the passage of the revamped energy laws in 2023, electric providers are now required to meet a 50% renewable portfolio by 2030 and 60% by 2035.
Among the Michigan report’s other highlights: The generation capacity of Michigan’s distributed generation program increased to 222.4 MW in 2024 from 189.6 MW in 2023, a more than 17% increase.
Texas, meanwhile, is the reddest and red states and has resoundingly supported Trump three times. In fact, the Lone Star State hasn’t voted for a Democrat for president since Jimmy Carter in 1976.
Even so, that deep red MAGA support hasn’t slowed the state’s move to embrace renewable energy and microgrids on multiple levels. Part of this trend is driven by a desire for a diverse generation portfolio to defend the sometimes-challenged Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) grid from resource inadequacy and outages in the fast-growing state.
Texas is, by far, the nation’s leading installer of utility-scale wind power. Installed capacity of utility-scale battery storage also is rapidly expanding from Beaumont to El Paso and Dallas to Houston, having grown a stunning 4,100% to 5,707 MW (5.7 GW) in the previous four years.
“Excluding California, Texas has more battery storage than the rest of the United States combined, accounting for over 32% of all the capacity installed nationwide,” reads a report from the Texas State Comptroller’s Office. “Fast permitting processes and a vast amount of land—mainstays of Texas’ low regulation, business-friendly environment and the same features that have allowed wind and solar power to thrive in Texas — make it easier for developers to enter the battery storage market. Furthermore, the global price of lithium-ion batteries has plunged 82% over the past 10 years as raw material prices decreased, and demand softened more than expected.”
California still rules in solar installed capacity, but Texas is gaining fast and outpaced the Golden State last year. Solar capacity in Texas is rising beyond 45,000 MW which is getting close to 10% of the total generation resource mix within ERCOT and other Texas grid connections.
Several years ago, Texas legislators and voters approved a $10 billion energy fund which also included more than $1 billion for distributed energy and microgrid-level project funding.
About the Author
Rod Walton, EnergyTech Managing Editor
Managing Editor
For EnergyTech editorial inquiries, please contact Managing Editor Rod Walton at [email protected].
Rod Walton has spent 17 years covering the energy industry as a newspaper and trade journalist. He formerly was energy writer and business editor at the Tulsa World. Later, he spent six years covering the electricity power sector for Pennwell and Clarion Events. He joined Endeavor and EnergyTech in November 2021.
Walton earned his Bachelors degree in journalism from the University of Oklahoma. His career stops include the Moore American, Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise, Wagoner Tribune and Tulsa World.
EnergyTech is focused on the mission critical and large-scale energy users and their sustainability and resiliency goals. These include the commercial and industrial sectors, as well as the military, universities, data centers and microgrids. The C&I sectors together account for close to 30 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S.
He was named Managing Editor for Microgrid Knowledge and EnergyTech starting July 1, 2023
Many large-scale energy users such as Fortune 500 companies, and mission-critical users such as military bases, universities, healthcare facilities, public safety and data centers, shifting their energy priorities to reach net-zero carbon goals within the coming decades. These include plans for renewable energy power purchase agreements, but also on-site resiliency projects such as microgrids, combined heat and power, rooftop solar, energy storage, digitalization and building efficiency upgrades.