China has outspent the United States by more than 2-to-1 on clean energy since 2019 and dominates solar, wind and battery supply chains. But Washington has carved out a narrow lead in two other technologies — enhanced geothermal and next-generation nuclear power — that the Trump administration is now backing as its main counter to Beijing.
The United States is leaning on enhanced geothermal and next-generation nuclear power to close a widening clean energy gap with China, even as Beijing keeps outspending Washington by more than 2-to-1 overall.
China's spending edge
Between 2019 and 2025, China spent more than $500 billion on clean energy — more than twice the $236 billion the United States invested over that stretch. Only 40% of that U.S. total came from domestic firms, according to an Atlas Public Policy report: "showing the US dependence on foreign direct investment for its manufacturing sector." The United States' and Israel's war in Iran has added to that imbalance, as fossil-fuel market volatility pushes more countries toward their own solar and wind buildouts, a shift that favors Chinese suppliers of panels, turbines and battery storage.
Geothermal and nuclear carve a U.S. lane
The Trump administration has rolled back most Biden-era clean energy support, but it has kept backing enhanced geothermal and next-generation nuclear power as rising electricity demand from data centers and artificial intelligence keeps both technologies on bipartisan ground. The Department of Energy projects enhanced geothermal could supply 90 gigawatts of power by 2050, enough to power about 65 million homes. The department's Reactor Pilot Program is fast-tracking testing and commercialization of small modular reactors, molten salt reactors and nuclear fusion, while Wall Street and Silicon Valley investors back advanced nuclear startups chasing the same power crunch.
Washington's export challenge
Foreign Affairs recently argued that these two technologies matter more than solar and wind because they don't depend on the weather, though it cautioned that Washington must coordinate with technology firms and foreign partners to export its geothermal and nuclear capabilities. Otherwise, the outlet said, Beijing will keep pulling ahead.
Source: Oilprice.com
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