From July 2025 through June 2026, low-carbon sources supplied about 57% of California’s electricity consumption, compared with about 22% from fossil fuels and 21% from net imports, whose generation mix is not specified here. Solar supplied almost a third of electricity overall: about 19% came from utility-scale solar and 12% from behind-the-meter systems, such as rooftop panels. Other clean sources included hydropower at about 9%, nuclear at 6%, wind at 5%, geothermal at 4%, and biofuels at roughly 1.5%. Gas accounted for almost all the fossil electricity. California therefore has a substantial clean electricity foundation, with solar clearly leading the way.

Is Electricity Growing in California?

California’s latest figures show progress in clean electricity, but overall electricity consumption per person remains below its record. The 2026 figure of about 7,600 kWh per person is 114 kWh, or roughly 1.5%, below the 2024 peak of 7,700 kWh. Meanwhile, low-carbon electricity generation reached a new high of about 4,300 kWh per person, exceeding the 2025 record by 52 kWh, or about 1%. That clean electricity growth is encouraging, while the shortfall in overall consumption relative to the record warrants attention as electrification and AI increase future electricity needs. These per-person comparisons alone do not establish whether California’s total electricity consumption is growing.

Suggestions

California should build on solar’s existing strength by expanding both utility-scale projects and rooftop installations, alongside grid connections and storage that help deliver more clean electricity when needed. Nuclear expansion should also be part of its strategy. The neighboring US state of Arizona generates about 25% of its electricity from nuclear, while the US state of Illinois generates almost half and France about two-thirds, demonstrating the substantial contribution nuclear can make. For wind, California can look to the western US states of New Mexico and Colorado, where wind supplies about 36% and 27% of electricity generation, respectively. Learning from these regions while expanding solar, nuclear, and suitable wind projects would help California meet growing electricity demand with low-carbon generation rather than fossil fuels, reducing climate-changing emissions and air pollution.

History

The supplied history covers 2024–2026 and shows mixed progress across California’s low-carbon electricity sources. Hydropower generation declined in all three years, falling by a combined 5.6 TWh, while wind gained 1.6 TWh in 2024 and another 0.6 TWh in 2025 before a small decline in 2026. Nuclear recorded gains of 0.7 TWh in 2024 and 0.8 TWh in 2026, contributing valuable clean electricity. Geothermal fluctuated but ended the period with a combined decline of 0.7 TWh, and biofuel generation also fell by 0.7 TWh across the three years. These setbacks underline the need to accelerate sustained clean electricity growth, especially through solar and nuclear expansion. Solar’s year-to-year changes are not included in this historical dataset, so it does not provide a complete picture of California’s low-carbon electricity growth.

Electricity Imports and Exports

Balance of Trade

* 12M = Last 12 months (Jul 2025 – Jun 2026) — a rolling 12-month period, not a calendar year.