Over the past year, from July 2025 to June 2026, Rhode Island's electricity consumption profile has shown a significant reliance on fossil energy, with over 85% of its electricity coming from fossil sources such as gas and oil. Gas alone accounted for nearly 84% of the electricity, while oil contributed a small fraction of this category. In contrast, clean, low-carbon sources, constituting nearly 14% of the total electricity generation, leaned predominantly on solar power, which made up almost 11% when divided between utility solar and behind-the-meter installations. Wind power contributed a modest portion, accounting for less than 2% of the energy supply. Biofuels added a minimal share to the low-carbon mix, reflecting close-to-none progress in diversifying beyond fossil-based generation.

Is Electricity Growing in Rhode Island?

Looking at the trend in electricity consumption, Rhode Island has experienced a decline. The latest data marks a drop to around 8,960 kWh per person in 2026 from a previous record of 9,999 kWh per person in 2023, a reduction of more than a thousand kWh. This decrease in electricity consumption also coincides with a slight reduction in clean electricity generation per person, which decreased by 24 kWh from the previous high to 1,291 kWh per person. This stagnation is alarming given the urgent need to transition towards a low-carbon energy supply to combat climate change further intensified by reliance on fossil energy sources.

Suggestions

To boost low-carbon electricity generation, Rhode Island should expand its existing solar capacity, reflecting successful models from states and countries leading in clean energy. For solar, inspiration can be drawn from Nevada, where solar contributes 35% of their electricity, and states like California and Lebanon, both reaching around 31%. As for wind and nuclear energy, neighboring New Hampshire offers a compelling model, generating over half of its energy from nuclear power, while Iowa and South Dakota have achieved more than 50% of their electricity from wind. Learning from these regions, Rhode Island can effectively balance the solar expansion while examining opportunities to incorporate nuclear energy to create a robust and diversified low-carbon energy portfolio.

History

Historically, Rhode Island has seen only negligible changes per year in other low-carbon energies like biofuels and wind, with biofuels seeing a slight decrease in 2024. There have been zero significant annual changes in wind and hydroelectric generation throughout 2024 to 2026. This stability, while avoiding declines, highlights a worrying lack of progress or investment in expanding these sectors. To enhance its clean energy transition, Rhode Island should prioritize increasing investment in effective strategies involving solar and nuclear, drawing from international models that successfully boosted nuclear and solar energy generation over recent decades, establishing both as integral to meeting future low-carbon electricity needs.

Electricity Imports and Exports

Balance of Trade

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