The data was released a day after the new U.S. energy secretary, Chris Wright, strongly criticized solar and wind energy on two fronts. He said on Monday at the start of CERAWeek by S&P Global, an annual energy conference in Houston, that they couldn’t meet the growing electricity needs of the world and that their use was driving up energy costs.

The Trump Administration has cut off much federal government support for alternative energy, which may hinder growth in

The US installed 50 GW of new solar capacity in 2024, the most new capacity added in a single year of any energy technology in over two decades.