Global renewable energy investment reached $327.5 billion in the first half of 2026, roughly unchanged from the previous six months and 21% below its peak in late 2024, according to BloombergNEF.
The standout area was solar projects built together with battery storage. Investment in these projects reached a record $25 billion, nearly double the second half of 2025 and triple the level from a year earlier. The US and Australia are leading this trend.
Standalone solar is having a much tougher year. Financing dropped 20% to $75.4 billion, its lowest level since the solar boom began in 2021. Investors are increasingly worried about grid congestion, electricity prices falling when too much solar power is produced at once, and projects being forced to reduce output.
US Investment Jumps 54%
The US became the world’s second-largest renewable investment market, behind China. Investment jumped 54% year over year, helped by developers rushing to secure tax credits and rapidly rising electricity demand from AI data centers.
US solar investment climbed 41% to a record $45.8 billion, while wind investment more than doubled to $13.8 billion.
Wind presented a more mixed picture globally. Total wind investment fell 27% to $92.3 billion, largely because offshore wind investment collapsed 72%. Meanwhile, European onshore wind remained relatively strong, with Germany, Romania and Serbia recording record investment.
Investor takeaway: Renewable investment is no longer growing everywhere at once. Money is increasingly moving toward projects that combine solar with batteries, giving developers more control over when electricity reaches the grid. BloombergNEF expects renewable capacity additions to decline in 2026 for the first time in more than a decade, before returning to growth in 2027
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