US utilities get failing grade on clean energy transition

The country's largest electric utilities are backsliding on their shift away from fossil fuels, according to a new report from the Sierra Club that gave 76 major utilities an overall failing grade for the second year running. Utilities collectively plan to close only 25% of their coal plant capacity by 2030, down from 35% just three years ago, while plans for new gas-fired power plants have grown to 140 gigawatts by 2035, up sharply from 72 gigawatts in 2023. Much of that new gas capacity is meant to power AI data centers. At the same time, planned solar and wind additions dropped for the first time in the report's six-year history, even though those sources are generally cheaper and quicker to build than gas plants.

More than four in ten of the tracked utilities have walked back their climate commitments since the current Trump administration took office, which has blocked federal permits for wind and solar projects and canceled offshore wind leases. Utilities also earn regulated profits on infrastructure they build, giving them financial incentive to keep investing in coal and gas rather than cleaner alternatives.

For homeowners, this matters mainly through the electric bill: prices rose at twice the rate of inflation last year, driven partly by the cost of keeping old coal plants running and building new gas plants. How much this affects any single household depends on the utility and state, since coal and gas reliance, rate structures, and regulatory oversight all vary by location.