Fossil generation pipeline rebounds while new clean generation slows: EDF

The nation's power plant plans are shifting back toward natural gas and other fossil fuels, after several years of rapid growth in wind and solar, according to a new report from the Environmental Defense Fund. Rising electricity demand, changes in federal policy, and rollbacks of clean energy tax credits have pushed utilities and developers toward traditional gas plants. If those gas plants get built and run as planned, fossil fuel generation could reach a share of the power mix not seen since the early 2010s.

But building new gas plants is getting harder, too. Turbine shortages and rising construction costs are making gas plants more expensive and slower to build, which the report says is already pushing some developers back toward wind, solar, and battery storage, since those can often be built faster and cheaper. A separate industry analysis cited in the report found gas investment is headed into a supply crunch through the late 2030s, driven largely by electricity demand from data centers.

For a homeowner, this is less about your house directly and more about where your electricity is coming from and how its cost might move over time. The report warns that leaning heavily on gas exposes utility customers to fuel price swings, something that hit hard during the 2022 price spike. Wind and solar, by contrast, don't require ongoing fuel purchases. None of this changes rebates or incentives for home upgrades right now, but it's a sign of how the broader electricity supply — and possibly future rates — could shift in the years ahead.