A report from clean energy think tank E2 reveals that the United States abandoned at least $35 billion in clean energy projects last year, driven by policies under the Trump administration. This marks a sharp reversal from prior growth, with cancellations outpacing new investments threefold. The electric vehicle and battery sectors bore the brunt, losing an estimated 48,000 potential jobs.
For over a decade, the US clean energy sector had experienced robust expansion, with billions invested in battery manufacturing, solar and wind power, and electric vehicle production. However, 2025 saw a dramatic slowdown, as detailed in E2's new analysis. New project announcements totaled far less than the cancellations, with companies scrapping, closing, or scaling back roughly three dollars for every one dollar committed. Overall, at least $35 billion in projects were abandoned, compared to just $3.4 billion across 2023 and 2024 combined.
Michael Timberlake, a director of research and publications at E2, described the shift as striking. “That’s pretty jarring considering how much progress we made in previous years,” he said. He attributed the decline primarily to the Trump administration's hostility toward renewables, which began signaling fossil fuel favoritism after the November 2024 election. For example, French energy firm TotalEnergies halted two offshore wind projects in late November 2024 due to post-election uncertainty and has not resumed them.
Upon taking office, President Trump paused offshore wind leasing and permitting, prompting developers to indefinitely delay or drop initiatives amid ongoing lawsuits—some of which federal judges have recently ruled in favor of the companies. The administration also withdrew billions in funding for various clean energy efforts and dismantled Biden-era supports, including energy-efficiency rules, IRS tax guidance, and loans for transmission lines to carry solar and wind power.
Congress amplified these changes with the “One Big Beautiful Act” passed over the summer, which eliminated tax credits for renewable energy production, halted investment incentives for battery manufacturing, and removed the $7,500 consumer tax credit for electric vehicles. Timberlake emphasized that while this law was significant, the broader policy environment fueled the cancellations. “It’s not an environment that encourages more investment because no one knows what six months from now will look like,” he noted.
The electric vehicle and battery industries suffered the most, each losing about $21 billion in investments (with some overlap) and 48,000 potential jobs. These sectors, having grown rapidly beforehand, had numerous projects vulnerable to policy shifts. States like Michigan felt acute impacts, losing 13 projects worth $8.1 billion due to its auto industry prominence; Illinois, Georgia, and New York also saw billions evaporate.
Some investments were redirected rather than fully abandoned. Ford, for instance, shifted its $1.5 billion Ohio Assembly Plant in Avon Lake from all-electric commercial vehicles to gas-powered and hybrid models. Timberlake saw potential upside: “The silver lining view is they’re hopefully maintaining those facilities so that when there is certainty, those factories will still be available for making EVs down the road.”
