Trump Or No Trump, Here Comes The Global Solar Industry

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The global solar industry is putting up the clean kilowatts at a record pace, the latest example being a supersized 1-gigawatt solar-plus-storage project in the United Arab Emirates, aimed at delivering solar energy on a reliable, baseload-worthy, 24/7 basis. To gild the green lily, the system is designed to be copied all over the world, pushing fossil fuels out of the power generation picture. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump has been pouring all his energy into…building a ballroom. Yes, a ballroom.

The Global Solar Industry Rocketing Upwards

To be fair, building a ballroom sounds like lots of fun, and President Trump could use a break from a very busy year. He has been working nonstop for months, particularly in regards to the US offshore wind industry. After all, it takes a lot of effort to torpedo an entire domestic industry, and there are still some remaining shreds of activity to stomp on.

So much for the US offshore wind industry. Onshore wind and solar activity have also suffered setbacks under Trump’s “American Energy Dominance” plan. Even so, the facts don’t lie. The International Renewable Energy Agency affirms the verifiable fact that wind and solar are the most affordable, accessible, and economically beneficial energy resources available today.

The global solar industry has been particularly adept at picking up the pace of renewable energy. “Solar generation grew by 306 TWh (+31%) in the first half of 2025, its fastest absolute growth on record,” the energy data platform Ember notes.

“If this pace continues, solar is on track to remain the fastest-growing source of electricity for the 21st consecutive year and to outpace wind growth in absolute terms for the fourth year in a row,” the organization adds.

The UAE Solar Industry Blows A Giant Raspberry At US President Trump

Facts, schmacts. President Trump exercises power by enforcing his own alternate reality, drilled into the collective consciousness of the public with laser-sharp precision across his Cabinet. US Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, for example, has declared that that energy storage does not even exist. Agriculture Secretary Sue Rollins can’t tell the difference between solar panels and buildings. Energy Secretary Chris Wright has also registered his two cents, insisting that “[w]ind and solar energy infrastructure is essentially worthless when it is dark outside, and the wind is not blowing.” 

Into this picture steps the United Arab Emirates. A seven-member federation of powerful oil and gas producers, the UAE nevertheless served as host of the 28th United Nations Conference of Parties on climate change. Taking place in UAE member Dubai in 2023, COP28 produced the UAE Consensus, described as “an unprecedented reference to transitioning away from all fossil fuels in energy systems, in a just, orderly and equitable manner in this critical decade to enable the world to reach net zero emissions by 2050, in keeping with the science.”

As if to drag President Trump along with Secretaries Burgum, Rollins, and Wright all in one blow, earlier today the UAE announced that energy storage actually does exist in space and time, and it is coming to drink your fossil fuel milkshake.

“UAE Breaks Ground on World’s First Gigascale Round-the-Clock Renewable Energy Project, Setting a New Global Standard For Clean Energy,” reads the headline of a press statement circulated earlier today by Masdar, the UAE’s sustainable energy showcase company, referring to the 5.2 gigawatt solar power plant integrated with a BESS (battery energy storage system) of 19 gigawatt-hours in the $6 billion project.

In case anyone over in the White House (or, what’s left of it) missed the message, Masdar emphasizes that the the project delivers the exact same baseload reliability championed by Trump’s “American Energy Dominance policy.” The company states that the project will deliver 1 gigawatt of “baseload renewable energy around the clock.”

Global Solar Industry To US: You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet

In the press statement announcing the new project, the entire UAE did all but point and laugh at US President Donald Trump and his reality-denying appointees.

“Masdar and Emirates Water and Electricity Company (EWEC), reimagines the potential of renewable energy by overcoming the barrier of intermittency,” Masdar explains.

“By producing gigascale baseload energy at a globally competitive tariff for the first time, the project sets a new international benchmark and reaffirms the UAE’s leadership position in renewable energy development,” the firm explains again.

Twisting the knife just a little bit more, Masdar also affirms that the system is designed with the global solar industry in mind, stating that “the project will act as a blueprint that can be replicated internationally to meet the growing demand for clean, secure, round-the-clock power.”

The company’s CEO, Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, also chipped in his two cents regarding the baseload-worthiness of solar energy. He described the project as “a blueprint for the world, demonstrating that renewable energy can be dispatched around the clock.”

Ballroom-Builder Casts The US Solar Industry Aside

To gild the green lily with yet another layer of green, Masdar’s new project also demonstrates that the global solar industry can deliver electricity faster, and more economically, than any other energy industry. Masdar expects the facility to be operation by 2027, which is just around the corner.

In terms of government support, Masdar further notes that the project has the enthusiastic endorsement of UAE policy makers at the highest level, including His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, and His Highness Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council.

Their Highnesses! No wonder President Trump is obsessed with the construction of an enormous ballroom on the grounds of the White House. He can’t claim the title of “His Highness,” but he can build a glitzy, gold-drenched ballroom worthy of the finest palaces in the world.

If the ballroom ever gets built, that is. So far, the project has only employed a smattering of demolition experts, who demolished the entire East Wing of the White House in short order.

Meanwhile, Masdar notes that its new 1-gigawatt renewable energy project alone will generate 10,000 new jobs for the UAE, factoring in component manufacturing jobs and service jobs along with the actual construction work, while supporting the UAE goals of economic diversification leadership in the AI sector, too.

The outlook is somewhat gloomier for the US solar industry and related jobs in energy storage, manufacturing, and the like. Still, Trump has a long way to go before he can completely snuff out the demand for electricity. The wind will keep blowing and the sun will keep shining long after Trump leaves office as scheduled on January 20, 2029 — peacefully one hopes, this time.

Solar developers in the US are already gearing up for a fresh burst of activity in the years following. That includes the US branch of Masdar, which has expressed a target of 25 gigawatts in the US over the next 10 years. The company states that it already has a 5.8-gigawatt US renewable energy portfolio under its belt. Hold on to your hats…

Photo (cropped): The global solar industry is cranking up to speed with an assist from modern energy storage technology, to achieve baseload, 24/7 reliability at the gigawatt scale (cropped, courtesy of Masdar).