In 2025, U.S. renewables accounted for the majority of capacity growth, driven mainly by strong additions in solar and wind capacity and unprecedented levels of public and private investment. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (“EIA”), the share of U.S. electricity generation from renewables is projected to increase from 22% in 2024 to 24% in 2025 and reach 25% in 2026, driven by continued growth in solar capacity.

Renewables expanded their share of the global power mix, gradually displacing fossil fuel-based generation and supporting progress toward climate and emissions-reduction targets. From a financial perspective, many renewable energy projects and companies continued to deliver attractive returns, supported by long-term contracts and falling technology costs, although certain segments experienced short-term pressure due to legislative changes and policy uncertainty.

According to the Deloitte 2026 Renewable Energy Industry Outlook report, annual additions of solar, wind, and storage capacity between 2026 and 2030 are expected to range from 30 GW to 66 GW per year. By October 2025, the United States had 37.4 GW of operating battery storage capacity, reflecting a 32% increase year to date, with an additional 19 GW under construction through 2026 and a robust pipeline of 187 GW expected by 2030.

Looking ahead, investors may be interested in stocks like Canadian Solar CSIQ, FuelCell Energy FCEL and NextEra Energy NEE, anticipating the sector to hold on to its winning streak next year as well.

According to the International Energy Agency, renewable energy is set to surpass coal as the world’s largest source of electricity as early as next year. By 2026, renewables are projected to account for 36% of global power generation compared with coal’s 32% share, largely due to the rapid expansion of solar and wind output over recent years.

This shift is being driven by a sharp decline in coal-fired power generation alongside continued acceleration in renewable energy deployment, supported by ongoing investments in nuclear and hydropower and the commissioning of new clean energy facilities worldwide.

The fast expansion of data centers, fueled by cloud computing and artificial intelligence, requires substantial and reliable electricity supplies, generating additional demand that renewables are well suited to meet. Declining installation costs for utility scale solar, wind, and battery storage projects, have also made renewable projects more economically attractive and competitive with conventional power sources.

Growing corporate investments and long-term power purchase agreements further strengthen the sector by providing stable revenue streams and financing certainty. Together, these factors create a favorable environment for sustained and solid growth in renewable energy throughout 2026. The stocks, discussed below, carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) each and have solid growth in 2026. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Canadian Solar: Headquartered Ontario, Canada, CSIQ is one of the leading manufacturers of solar photovoltaic modules and a provider of solar energy and battery energy storage solutions. The company also develops utility-scale solar power and battery-energy storage projects with a geographically diversified pipeline in various stages of development. Canadian Solar is witnessing increased sales of its solar modules and energy storage systems. Its third-quarter 2025 module shipments reached 5.1 GW, meeting expectations, along with 2.7 GWh of energy storage systems. For full-year 2026, the company forecasts total module shipments of 25-30 GW, including about 1 GW allocated to its projects.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CSIQ’s 2026 revenues and earnings implies a year-over-year increase of 34.8% and 77.7%, respectively. The stock has gained 120.1% over the past six months. 

FuelCell Energy: Based in Danbury, CT, the company offers a strategic opportunity in clean, reliable distributed power, supported by growth in hydrogen generation, carbon capture, and on-site energy solutions. Backed by government incentives and corporate decarbonization efforts, FuelCell Energy’s advancing technologies position it to capture long-term opportunities in the clean-energy and hydrogen markets. It continues to secure orders for round-the-clock clean power, supported by strong opportunities in South Korea, including a 108 MW project backlog and a 100 MW fuel cell deployment plan for an AI data center. Its carbonate fuel cell technology is well-suited for data centers, offering reliable, combustion-free, on-site power that can integrate with existing energy sources. 

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for FCEL’s 2026 revenues and earnings implies a year-over-year increase of 21.5% and 58.9%, respectively. The stock has gained 31.6% over the past six months. 

NextEra Energy: Based in Juno Beach, FL, the company produces a large volume of electricity from wind and solar energy. NextEra Energy benefits from net generation and storage capacity from a diverse portfolio of assets, primarily including natural gas, wind, solar and nuclear generation facilities and battery storage facilities. NEE expects to add 36.5-46.5 GW of new renewables in the 2024-2027 time frame to the generation portfolio via clean energy investments. In third-quarter 2025, the company added nearly 3 GW of renewable projects to the existing backlog.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for NEE’s 2026 revenues and earnings implies a year-over-year increase of 17.2% and 7.6%, respectively. The stock has gained 12.2% over the past six months.