Power plants planned and retiring in California
California plans 19,721 MW, 19% of its 104,198 MW in service (16th of 51). 8,062 MW is being built or tested; storage leads at 11,485 MW.
California: planned against running
California planned, by fuel
- Solar 7,696 MW (39%)
- Storage 11,485 MW (58%)
- Wind 344 MW (2%)
- Natural gas 112 MW (1%)
- Hydro 8 MW (0%)
- Other 76 MW (0%)
California operating, by fuel
- Solar 25,082 MW (24%)
- Storage 20,128 MW (19%)
- Wind 6,447 MW (6%)
- Natural gas 36,591 MW (35%)
- Coal 57 MW (0%)
- Nuclear 2,240 MW (2%)
- Hydro 10,227 MW (10%)
- Oil 474 MW (0%)
- Other 2,952 MW (3%)
When California capacity arrives and leaves
MW due online and retiring in California, 2026 to 2035: 7 rows
| Year | California planned MW | California retiring MW |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 4871 | 1368 |
| 2027 | 7041 | 1491 |
| 2028 | 6037 | 4 |
| 2029 | 872 | 329 |
| 2030 | 701 | 6 |
| 2031 | 200 | 88 |
| 2035 | No data | 1 |
7 rows from EIA-860M.
CSVCalifornia projects dated after 2035 or without a year: 0 MW.
Where the California projects are
California: 30 counties shaded, darker for more planned MW.
Filter California planned projects
Filter the 188 planned project lines in California.
19,721 MW across 188 project lines, 19% of the 104,198 MW operating in California.
- Haiwee Pumped Storage Project, Inyo: 1,000 MW storage, online 2028
- Whale Rock Pumped Storage Hydro Project, San Luis Obispo: 600 MW storage, online 2027
- Bellefield 2 Solar & Energy Storage Farm, Kern: 500 MW solar, online 2026
- Bellefield 2 Solar & Energy Storage Farm, Kern: 500 MW storage, online 2026
- Grace Energy Center, Riverside: 500 MW solar, online 2027
What the California numbers say
California runs 104,198 MW today. The planned list would add 19,721 MW (19%) while 3,360 MW (3%) of operating units carry a retirement date. Through 2035, California has 19,721 MW due online and 3,287 MW due to retire there.
California planned mix: 99% solar, storage and wind, 1% natural gas. California stages: 8,062 MW under construction or in testing, 4,160 MW permits received, not started, 2,376 MW permits pending, 5,123 MW early planning, no approvals started. California retired 2,601 MW from 2021 to 2026 and has 9,492 MW on the canceled or postponed list.
California capacity by fuel and status
| California fuel | Operating MW | Planned MW | Retiring MW | Retired MW | Canceled in California, MW |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solar | 25,082 | 7,696 | 63 | 319 | 3,811 |
| Storage | 20,128 | 11,485 | 11 | 365 | 592 |
| Wind | 6,447 | 344 | 87 | 113 | 236 |
| Natural gas | 36,591 | 112 | 3,194 | 1,310 | 3,996 |
| Coal | 57 | – | – | – | – |
| Nuclear | 2,240 | – | – | – | – |
| Hydro | 10,227 | 8 | – | 101 | 11 |
| Oil | 474 | – | 2 | 75 | – |
| Other | 2,952 | 76 | 2 | 317 | 846 |
| All fuels | 104,198 | 19,721 | 3,360 | 2,601 | 9,492 |
California counties with the most planned capacity
| California county | Planned, MW | Generators | Largest fuel |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kern County | 3,414 | 33 | Solar |
| Fresno County | 3,252 | 22 | Storage |
| Riverside County | 3,048 | 13 | Storage |
| San Bernardino County | 1,500 | 21 | Storage |
| Los Angeles County | 1,235 | 25 | Storage |
| Placer County | 1,023 | 7 | Solar |
| Inyo County | 1,000 | 4 | Storage |
| Imperial County | 661 | 11 | Solar |
| Sacramento County | 660 | 4 | Storage |
| Tulare County | 625 | 4 | Storage |
Largest planned projects in California
| California plant | County | Fuel | Stage | Due | MW |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Haiwee Pumped Storage Project | Inyo | Storage | Early planning, no approvals started | 2028 | 1,000 |
| Whale Rock Pumped Storage Hydro Project | San Luis Obispo | Storage | Early planning, no approvals started | 2027 | 600 |
| Bellefield 2 Solar & Energy Storage Farm | Kern | Solar | Under construction or in testing | 2026 | 500 |
| Bellefield 2 Solar & Energy Storage Farm | Kern | Storage | Under construction or in testing | 2026 | 500 |
| Grace Energy Center | Riverside | Solar | Permits pending | 2027 | 500 |
| Grace Energy Center | Riverside | Storage | Permits pending | 2027 | 500 |
| Pelicans Jaw Hybrid Solar | Kern | Solar | Under construction or in testing | 2027 | 440 |
| SE Athos II, LLC | Riverside | Storage | Under construction or in testing | 2027 | 402 |
| Gabriel | Los Angeles | Storage | Under construction or in testing | 2027 | 400 |
| Lycan Solar Project | Riverside | Solar | Permits pending | 2027 | 400 |
California against its neighbors
California: planned MW equal 19% of operating. Bordering states: Arizona plans 36% of what it runs (18 points above California); Nevada plans 37% of what it runs (18 points above California); Oregon plans 42% of what it runs (23 points above California).
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Sources
EIA-860M inventory for California: 3,228 operating generators, 188 planned lines, edition August 2026, retrieved 5 Oct 2026. Sources for {e(sn)}.
More on California
Questions
California: how much new power plant capacity is planned?
19,721 MW, 19% of the 104,198 MW California runs. 8,062 MW is being built or tested in California.
California: what kind of power plants are planned?
Storage leads California with 11,485 of 19,721 planned MW.
California: which power plants are retiring?
3,360 MW of California units have a retirement date, of which 0 MW is coal and 3,194 MW natural gas.
Will California get all the planned plants?
Not necessarily. California has 9,492 MW canceled or postponed, and 2,601 MW (natural gas the largest group) retired from 2021 to 2026.