SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY LEADS IN SOLAR CAPACITY; ENERGY CONSUMPTION INCREASED
New policies and innovations are driving a shift from the use of carbon-based energy sources to alternative sources, clean technology, and increased energy efficiency. This indicator measures San Bernardino County’s progress in achieving sustainable economic growth by tracking cumulative and annual residential, non-residential, and utility-scale solar generation capacity, the growth in zero emission vehicle (ZEV) adoption, and the trend in electricity and natural gas consumption.
SOLAR GENERATION KEY TERMS
Utility-scale or “front-of-the-meter”: Large solar installations of 1 megawatt (MW) or greater that generate electricity primarily for sale to the grid, including solar photovoltaic (PV) systems and concentrating solar power (CSP) systems. Installations can be owned or contracted by electric utilities or independent power producers.
Distributed or “back-of-the-meter”: Residential, commercial, industrial, non-profit, education, military, other government, and unspecified solar installations, predominantly on rooftops, that provide on-site power and are connected to the power grid through an investor-owned utility (IOU) or publicly owned utility (POU).
Watts: Unit of measure of system electricity generation capacity provided in AC (alternating current) for this analysis, where 1 megawatt (MW) is equivalent to 1,000 kilowatts (kW). Every 1,000 MW of solar capacity generates enough electricity annually to meet the average energy needs of approximately 250,000 California households (assuming average consumption of 7 MWh per year and a capacity factor of 22%, to account for the fact that solar does not produce energy around the clock).
TREND / GEOGRAPHIC COMPARISON
Solar Capacity – Annual
In San Bernardino County, non-residential installation capacity jumped 167% in 2025. Non-residential includes commercial, educational, industrial, nonprofit, and governmental installations. Meanwhile, residential distributed solar capacity was on an upward trend through 2023, then fell by nearly half in 2024. A likely contributor to the drop was a California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) policy change on how residents within the Southern California Edison (SCE) and San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) service areas are compensated for excess power sent to the grid. Systems in place before the change in April 2023 receive the more generous Net Energy Metering (NEM) 2.0 compensation rates, leading to a payback period of approximately 5-6 years; those in place after April 2023 contend with a payback period of approximately 14-15 years under the less generous NEM 3.0 rates.[1]
DROP IN DISTRIBUTED SOLAR INSTALLATIONS AFTER REDUCED COMPENSATION FOR EXCESS POWER
Annual Distributed Solar Generation Capacity Added in Megawatts in San Bernardino County, 2021-2025
In San Bernardino County, the addition of utility-scale solar installations varies from year-to-year, ranging from five MW of capacity added in 2020 to 789 MW of capacity added in 2023. On a per capita basis, this results in a low of 0.2 MW per 100,000 residents in 2020 to 36.0 MW per 100,000 residents in 2023. Among peer counties, installations in Riverside County are relatively consistent year-over-year, while installations in Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego counties are more episodic.
SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY ADDS 789 MW OF UTILITY-SCALE SOLAR CAPACITY IN 2023
Annual Utility-Scale Solar Generation Capacity Added in Megawatts per 100,000 Residents by County, 2020-2024
Solar Capacity – Cumulative
As of December 31, 2024, San Bernardino County had the greatest cumulative per capita and absolute distributed solar generation capacity among Southern California peers. San Bernardino County’s total solar output of 244 MW per 100,000 residents strongly outpaces Riverside (72), San Diego (63), Orange (38), and Los Angeles (22) counties.
SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY HAS HIGHEST CUMULATIVE “BEHIND-THE-METER” SOLAR GENERATION CAPACITY AMONG SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA PEERS
Cumulative Distributed Solar Generation Capacity in Megawatts per 100,000 Residents and Absolute Count by County, <1997-2024
As of December 31, 2024, Riverside County leads the region in utility-scale solar generating capacity with cumulatively 4,737 MW, or 191 MW per 100,000 residents. San Bernardino County follows with cumulative utility-scale solar generating capacity of 2,355 MW, or 107 MW per 100,000 residents.
INLAND EMPIRE LEADS UTILITY-SCALE SOLAR GENERATION CAPACITY IN SOCAL
Cumulative Utility-Scale Solar Generation Capacity in Megawatts per 100,000 Residents and Absolute Count by County, <1997-2024
Energy Consumption
While energy uses fluctuates moderately from year to year, since 2015, overall per capita electricity consumption has increased 6%, driven by a 14% increase in residential electricity consumption. Non-residential electricity consumption – comprising the sectors of agriculture, commercial, industrial, mining, streetlighting, and transportation, communications, and utilities – has increased just 2% between 2015 and 2024. Meanwhile, natural gas consumption grew 9% since 2015, with residential natural gas consumption increasing by 7% and non-residential consumption increasing by 10%.
In 2024 in Southern California, San Bernardino County had the highest total electricity consumption per capita (7.35 kilowatt-hours per capita) compared to 7.02 in Riverside County, 6.56 in Los Angeles County, 6.06 in Orange County, and 5.75 in San Diego County. All counties experienced an increase in per capita electricity use between 2023 and 2024.
In terms of natural gas consumption, Los Angeles County had the highest per capita consumption (285.91 therms per capita), followed by San Bernardino County (248.12 therms per capita), Orange County (177.00 therms per capita), Riverside County (171.98 therms per capita), and San Diego County (157.07 therms per capita). All counties experienced a decrease in per capita natural gas consumption between 2023 and 2024.
RESIDENTIAL ENERGY USE DRIVES OVERALL INCREASE IN ELECTRICITY CONSUMPTION
Electricity Consumption by Kilowatt-hours per Capita in San Bernardino County, 2015-2024
NATURAL GAS CONSUMPTION PER CAPITA UP 9% OVER 10 YEARS
Gas Consumption in Therms per Capita in San Bernardino County, 2015-2024
Zero-Emission Vehicle (ZEV) Sales
Compared to peer Southern California counties, San Bernardino County lags in light duty ZEV sales. However, the county continues to have the fastest rate of growth, from 8% of sales in 2021 to 17% of sales in 2025, which equates to 107% growth in five years. Riverside County experienced the next fastest rate of growth at 106%, while Orange County had the slowest rate of growth at 84%. All counties in the region had fewer ZEV sales in 2025 than in 2024, which was the all-time high in ZEV sales.
SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY: LOWEST ZEV SALE PERCENTAGE AMONG SOCAL PEERS, BUT FASTEST RATE OF GROWTH
County Comparison of the Percentage of Light Duty Vehicle Sales that are Zero Emission Vehicles, 2021-2025
EV Charging Stations
As of September 2025, there were 3,400 charging stations in San Bernardino County, which is nearly twice as many charging stations as of September 2023. There are approximately 4 electric vehicle (EV) charging stations per 100 electric vehicles registered in San Bernardino County as of September 2025. This compares to 9 chargers per 100 EVs statewide.
[1] LeadGen Economy, Net Metering Policy Impact on Solar Lead Value: A Complete Guide for Lead Generation Professionals, December 16, 2025 (www.leadgen-economy.com/blog/net-metering-policy-solar-lead-value/), retrieved April 9, 2026 Utility Dive, California rooftop solar had a tough year following NEM 3.0. Can the industry bounce back?, January 2, 2024 (https://www.utilitydive.com/news/california-rooftop-solar-nem-30-outlook/702498/), retrieved April 9, 2026