CALGARY, Alberta (Feb. 4, 2026) Enverus Intelligence® Research (EIR), a subsidiary of Enverus, the most trusted energy SaaS company that leverages generative AI across its solutions, is releasing Power & Renewables Fundamentals: Shifting to Stability, a new report examining how rising electricity demand, policy shifts and interconnection bottlenecks are reshaping renewable energy economics and accelerating the market’s renewed focus on grid reliability.
EIR finds that U.S. electricity load is projected to grow 34% by 2050, but renewable development is increasingly constrained by interconnection delays, accelerated tax credit phaseouts and rising costs forcing power markets to prioritize dispatchable generation and firming capacity to maintain reliability. Recent extreme weather events, including Winter Storm Fern, reinforced these structural challenges by exposing the limits of capacity that lacks firm deliverability during periods of peak demand.
“The power market is no longer optimizing for lowest marginal cost, it is optimizing for reliability,” said Ryan Luther, a director at EIR.
“Interconnection delays, policy uncertainty and higher development costs are pressuring renewable project economics, while dispatchable resources and firming technologies are being repriced as essential to keeping the electric grid stable during both normal operations and extreme weather events.”
Key takeaways:
- Electricity demand is forecast to rise 34% by 2050, intensifying the need for reliable generation as data centers, electrification and industrial load growth outpace new capacity additions.
- Interconnection delays now average 3.5 years, creating a structural bottleneck that slows renewable buildouts and elevates near term‑ supply risk across multiple independent system operators (ISOs).
- Renewable energy economics are under mounting pressure as accelerated tax credit retirements, new tariffs and foreign entity of concern (FEOC) requirements push levelized cost of energy (LCOE) higher, with impacts varying significantly by region.
- Solar transaction valuations fell sharply in 2025, with average deal multiples dropping to roughly half of the ~$1 million per megawatt levels observed since late 2024, reflecting tighter economics and policy uncertainty.
- Battery energy storage retains federal tax credit support, but market saturation, lower price volatility and compliance uncertainty are narrowing opportunities, making regional selectivity increasingly critical.
EIR’s analysis leverages proprietary data and modeling, and draws from a variety of products including Enverus FOUNDATIONS® – Power & Renewables.
Play Fundamentals is an EIR research series that dives into a key geographical basin or technology. A collective series, with each play updated annually, it includes technical research and interactive maps, investment opportunities, benchmarking, macro trends and basin analytics, empowering readers to make intelligent connections and, overall, more informed investment, operating and strategic decisions. It is considered the most in-depth research EIR offers and among the most-read analysis series in the energy industry.
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About Enverus Intelligence® Research
Enverus Intelligence ® | Research, Inc. (EIR) is a subsidiary of Enverus that publishes energy-sector research focused on the oil, natural gas, power and renewable industries. EIR publishes reports including asset and company valuations, resource assessments, technical evaluations and macro-economic forecasts; and helps make intelligent connections for energy industry participants, service companies and capital providers worldwide. Enverus is the most trusted, energy-dedicated SaaS company, with a platform built to create value from generative AI, offering real-time access to analytics, insights and benchmark cost and revenue data sourced from our partnerships to 95% of U.S. energy producers, and more than 40,000 suppliers. Learn more at Enverus.com.
