Newsom touts California's record gains in battery energy at U.N. climate summit

California added 1,200 megawatts of battery energy storage to its electrical grid over the last six months, further building on its nation-leading capacity and pushing the state closer to its clean energy goals, officials said Thursday.

- BY HAYLEY SMITH

IRFAN KHAN Los Angeles Times A TECHNICIAN checks equipment at a battery energy storage facility in Daggett, Calif., in October 2023.

Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the latest milestone while making the rounds at the United Nations Conference of the Parties climate summit in Belém, Brazil, where he is touting the state's international climate leadership amid the notable absence of officials from the Trump administration.

With the latest additions, the Golden State has reached 16,942 megawatts of available battery storage — about one-third of the estimated capacity needed to reach its goal of 100% clean energy by 2045.

Battery energy storage systems capture excess wind and solar power and push it onto the grid during hours of peak demand, or when the sun isn't shining or the wind isn't blowing.

Newsom used the announcement as an opportunity to swipe at President Trump, who has focused heavily on the growth of fossil fuels such as oil, gas and coal while simultaneously slashing funding for renewable energy projects in California and across the United States.

“Donald Trump’s reckless energy agenda puts China first and America last — letting Beijing seize the global clean energy economy and the good-paying jobs, manufacturing, and economic prosperity that come with it,” the governor said in a statement. “California won't stand by and watch.”