PVTIME – The US Department of Energy (DOE) has unveiled a budget proposal for the 2026 financial year that would eliminate all direct funding for solar and wind energy, while channelling billions into nuclear weapons programmes. The DOE has announced this dramatic shift in US energy policy, seeking to slash funding for renewable technologies by 74%, from $3.46 billion in fiscal year 2025 to $888 million.
Just $240 million of the $888 million earmarked for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) would be allocated to renewable technologies under the plans, representing a significant decrease from $795 million in fiscal 2024. Funding for photovoltaic solar, wind energy and renewable grid integration would be cut entirely, with all allocations being redirected to hydropower and geothermal projects. This is in stark contrast to fiscal 2024, when $318 million was allocated to solar, $137 million to wind, and $22 million to grid integration.
The proposal also signals deep cuts to the EERE’s sustainable transport, building and industrial portfolios. The Office of Technology Commercialisation and the Clean Energy Demonstration Office would be disbanded due to budget reductions of 100%.
The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) is by far the largest beneficiary of the $49.8 billion budget, receiving over $25 billion to ‘modernise the nation’s nuclear deterrent’. The budget allocates $1.37 billion to the Office of Nuclear Energy and $750 million to the Loan Programs Office for commercial nuclear technologies.
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