Cleantech in the U.S. - statistics & facts
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The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) was enacted in 2022 as the single largest climate spending bill in U.S. history. Since then, investment for the manufacturing and deployment of key clean technologies have soared. The U.S. now has its sights set on supplanting its biggest rival in the clean energy arms race, China, to become the world’s leading cleantech superpower. But with China currently dominating cleantech value chains, the U.S. has its work cut out to achieve its ambitions.
Things are looking good for the U.S. cleantech industry. Massive investment is flooding into innovative companies, while the government is providing considerable incentives to support the clean energy transition, thereby increasing jobs, boosting the economy, and addressing carbon emissions. The global cleantech race is still in its early stages, and while currently trailing China, the U.S. is clearly ready to compete.
Growing deployment of key clean technologies
The adoption of clean technologies in the U.S. continues to grow, with 2023 a particularly successful year for clean energy deployment. New solar capacity additions increased 60 percent year-over-year to a record high of 32.4 gigawatts, while battery storage capacity additions more than doubled to almost 10 gigawatts. U.S. battery electric vehicle sales also reached a record high in 2023, with almost 1.2 million units sold. Upcoming climate technologies like carbon capture and storage (CCS) are also seeing growth in the U.S., with the number of CCS facilities in the pipeline rising to more than 230 as of 2024, 19 of which are now operational.U.S. cleantech investment is booming
The U.S. is the second-largest destination for global energy transition investment, with a record 303 billion U.S. dollars spent in 2023 for technologies including renewable energy, electrified transportation, energy storage, and electrified heat. The U.S. has become an increasingly attractive place for cleantech investment thanks to incentives under the IRA and the Chips Act. Public and private cleantech investment has increased by more than 70 percent since 2021, reaching 240 billion U.S. dollars in 2023. The retail segment typically receives the largest share of private investment, followed by the energy and industry sectors. In 2023, almost half of the clean investment in the energy and industry sector went toward solar deployment, while zero emissions vehicles accounted for the majority of retail clean investment.Ramping up domestic cleantech manufacturing
Annual spending for the construction or expansion of factories that manufacture clean technologies is growing at a fast rate as the U.S. looks to reduce its dependence on clean energy imports from China. From 2021 to 2023, annual U.S. clean manufacturing investment more than tripled to some 50 billion U.S. dollars, 70 percent of which went toward battery manufacturing . Additionally, more than 100 cleantech manufacturing facilities were announced in the first 16-months of the IRA being signed, 34 of which were across battery value chains. Batteries are a key part of the clean energy transition, and the U.S. knows this. In September 2024, the Department of Energy announced it will award more than three billion U.S. dollars to projects across 14 states that will increase domestic production of advanced batteries and battery materials. The Southeast has recently emerged as major hub for clean energy projects, with states including Georgia and South Carolina awarded billions of dollars for battery and battery component factories.Things are looking good for the U.S. cleantech industry. Massive investment is flooding into innovative companies, while the government is providing considerable incentives to support the clean energy transition, thereby increasing jobs, boosting the economy, and addressing carbon emissions. The global cleantech race is still in its early stages, and while currently trailing China, the U.S. is clearly ready to compete.
