In the first quarter of 2023, the industry installed 4,079 MW of utility-scale clean power capacity, enough to power nearly 904,000 American homes. First quarter installations fell below recent levels, down 36% compared to the first quarter of 2022, according to the Q1 2023 Clean Power Quarterly Market Report. This is the lowest first quarter the industry has experienced since 2020. All three technologies experienced significant declines compared to the first quarter of 2022. Wind installations decreased by 50%, battery storage by 32%, and solar by 23%.

First quarter installs were low in part due to the challenges that continue to delay clean power project timelines. Solar is the most delayed technology. Seesawing regulations due to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s (DOC) ongoing anticircumvention investigation delayed or forced changes to solar module delivery plans. Furthermore, long release timelines for modules detained by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) further pushed back delivery timelines for some major solar projects, too.

Despite a fall in quarterly installations, the pipeline continues to grow. The 138,808 MW in the pipeline represents an 11% increase from Q1 2022, and a 62% increase from Q1 2021. Solar continues to be the leading technology in the pipeline, accounting for 59% of all clean power capacity in development. Land-based wind accounts for 15% of the pipeline, battery storage represents 14%, and offshore wind claims the remaining 13%.

Our Clean Power Quarterly provides a snapshot view of the latest U.S. utility wind, solar, and battery storage industry activity and trends. The report includes first quarter installations, projects under construction and in advanced development, new power purchase agreements, OEM market share, project acquisition activity, offshore wind energy activity, and much, much more.

Read the Report

• Full Report: The full report is available to ACP members only.
  • Not a member? Join now.
• Public Report: The free public version of the report, which provides a summary of key takeaways and graphics from the full report, is available for download below.
• Appendices: Interested in the data behind the report? Members can download the appendices here and check out the underlying data in spreadsheet form here.
• Press Release: Read our press release for more.

Webinar: Clean Power Quarterly Market Report | Q1 2023

Join ACP experts at a live webinar to dive deeper into comprehensive research on U.S. clean energy markets, deployments, policies, regulations, and financing found in both Clean Power Quarterly Market Report | Q1 2023 and the Clean Power Annual Market Report | 2022.

This members-only webinar helps you dissect exclusive market data found in the reports and breaks down what these trends mean for your business moving forward. It will take place on June 13, 2023. Stay tuned for more details.

Visit the interactive website for data highlights from the report.

The clean power industry commissioned over 25.5 GW of new clean power in 2022—a decline of 15% compared to the record-breaking year of 2021. While short of expectations, the industry did capture the majority of the market clean power projects, representing an impressive nearly 80% of all new capacity.

2022 brought the challenges and growth potential facing the clean power industry into stark relief. President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) into law on August 16. This unprecedented national commitment to clean power is the largest policy investment in clean energy on record. The IRA is set to catalyze clean energy growth, ultimately more than tripling annual installations of wind, solar, and battery storage by the end of the decade.

However, despite the positive prospects, the clean power industry faced a string of obstacles in 2022. Supply chain constraints, lengthy delays connecting projects to the grid, unclear trade restrictions, longstanding permitting obstacles, and uncertainty over IRA implementation hindered project development and investment activity.

ACP’s Clean Power Annual Market Report 2022 is a nearly 200-page comprehensive overview of key industry statistics, trends, and rankings from 2022.

Read the Report

• Full Report: The full report is available to ACP members only.
  • Not a member? Join now.
• Public Report: The free public version of the report, providing a summary of key takeaways and graphics from the full report, is available for download below.
• Data Takeaways: Visit our new interactive, data-driven website that details the 2022 year-in-review highlights.
• Press Release: Read our press release for more.

Webinar: Clean Power Market Reports (June 13)

Join ACP experts at a live webinar to dive deeper into comprehensive research on U.S. clean energy markets, deployments, policies, regulations, and financing found in both Clean Power Quarterly Market Report Q1 2023 and the Clean Power Annual Market Report 2022.

This members-only webinar helps you dissect exclusive market data found in the reports and breaks down what these trends mean for your business moving forward. It will take place on June 13, 2023. Stay tuned for more details.

The ACP Entry-Level Wind Technician Guidelines will aim to ensure a comprehensive understanding of entry-level requirements for operations and maintenance wind technicians for onshore and offshore wind facilities. The guidelines will help:

• Alleviate the continued pressure on costs and resources
• Reduce bottlenecks in training
• Provide a stable, competent entry level workforce
• Reduce recruitment constraints by knowledgeable entry-level technicians ready for company qualifications and experience
• Decrease training duplication
• Reduce the pressure on recruitment and training
• Prove useful for both construction and maintenance technicians

Comment Period

We are currently inviting industry professionals to provide comments on these draft guidelines, which are available for ACP members only.

Please fill out the form below for access to the draft guidelines, and find instructions on providing public comments here. Simply download the file, fill it out, and send it back.

Deadline for comments is Saturday July 22, 2023.

If you are a non-member who would like to review the draft guidelines, please email workforcedev@cleanpower.org.

Key takeaways:

• Rapid investment surge: Clean energy investments hit $150 billion in announcements, equivalent to five years’ worth of American clean energy investments and surpassing the total investment in U.S. clean power projects commissioned between 2017-2021.
• Manufacturing growth and job creation: 47 new utility-scale clean energy manufacturing facilities were announce, which will create 18,000+ jobs, transforming U.S. manufacturing.
• Policy support critical for continued progress: ACP urges permitting reform to realize clean energy potential from recent announcements, with the sector working to support 1 million jobs by 2050.

As of March 31, 2023, over $150 billion in capital investment has been announced for utility-scale clean energy projects and manufacturing facilities since federal incentives were signed into law last August. This is equivalent to five years’ worth of American clean energy investment, surpassing total investment into U.S. clean power projects commissioned between 2017 – 2021.

The new Clean Energy Investing in America report details several other landmark achievements for the industry, including announcements of 47 new or expanded utility-scale clean energy manufacturing facilities, bringing with them an expected 18,000 new American jobs.

Alongside announcements of massive investment, the report details announcements of over $4.4 billion in savings for over 24 million utility customers.

Visit the interactive website, and download the new report below.  

ACP urges Congress to oppose controversial Maritime Crewing mandates.

Key Takeaways

• Maritime Crewing Mandates Would Halt Offshore Wind Development and Jeopardize American Jobs
• The Majority of Offshore Wind Vessels Will Be American Built, Owned and Crewed
• Congress Should Not Block the Use of a Few, Globally Limited Vessels
• De-Risking Investments in U.S. Installation Vessels Would Create More American Jobs

Learn more in this fact sheet that covers some of the recent disinformation around offshore wind and whale deaths that opponents have been spreading in the media.

Created for job-seekers, hiring managers, the existing workforce, and the public, ACP’s Clean Energy Career Pathways Catalog presents over 300 job descriptions for technical and specialty jobs within the clean energy industry.

This catalog shows the upward mobility and opportunities that exist within the industry, alongside highlighting the skills and requirements necessary to work in these positions. The aim is to provide a better understanding of how existing transferrable skills could be applied to clean energy jobs or what a career progression within the workforce could look like.

This massive effort is meant to provide workers in other energy industries, veterans, and workers in underrepresented communities a better idea of the jobs available in clean energy, as well as support the industry with recruiting and retention.

This catalog is focused on technical and specialty job. It does not include the wide array of jobs like accounting, communications, office management, legal, government affairs, etc. that exist within these clean power sectors, but for which the function is similar no matter the industry. 

Browse the Catalog

Browse the full catalog in an interactive PDF. Or, browse by clean energy sector in the individual files below:

• Solar
• Land-based Wind
• Offshore Wind
• Storage
• Transmission

Browse the Digital Catalog

Mix-and-match filters to find the right fit for you in the digital version of this catalog.

Search for Clean Energy Jobs

After browsing the catalog for jobs that match your skills, search our Careers in Clean Energy database for open positions near you in the clean energy workforce.

If you have questions about the catalog, please email workforcedev@cleanpower.org.  

• 22 Crew Transfer Vessels (CTV)
• 3 Service Operation Vessels (SOV)
• 4 different types of installation vessels
• 3 tugs and barges