For first time, Americans are getting more of their electricity from solar than coal
Get the Energy newsletter
Daily energy & climate — solar, EVs, oil, the policy fights and tech bets shaping the transition. Free.
- Solar supplied 12.8% of U.S. electricity in May, surpassing Coal at 12.2% for the first time on record.
- Ember' analysis of government data shows solar's share has more than doubled over five years while coal's share fell from 20% to 12.2%.
- Congress passed the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” rolling back major provisions of President Biden’s 2022 Inflation Reduction Act.
- Trump announced $700 million in funding for the coal industry, including money for the first new coal‑fired plants in 13 years, using funds previously earmarked for fossil‑fuel reduction.
- Lena Moffitt, executive director of Evergreen Action, called the $700 million coal bailout “throwing a lifeline to a ship that has already sunk.”
- Patrick Drupp, director of climate policy at the Sierra Club, said renewables will keep expanding on the grid, benefiting wallets, health, and the planet.
Why it matters: Solar’s surge cuts reliance on coal, lowering emissions and potentially easing electricity costs for consumers, while the Trump administration’s $700 million coal bail‑out aims to preserve jobs but struggles against the long‑term decline of coal generation, highlighting a policy clash between market trends and political subsidies.
