Key Insight

The energy sector is splitting into two distinct stories — a massive re-rating of traditional utility business models versus actual energy production fundamentals that remain only modestly above trend — and the divergence is historically extreme.

Generated by Claude on Apr 15, 2026

Electricity scarcity returning as an economic constraint

Tracking demand growth, grid tightness, energy prices, and the supply response across solar, clean energy, and nuclear.

Updated yesterday.

Exclude COVID

Demand

Electricity & Gas Utility Output

Industrial production index for electric and gas utilities — tracks total generation volume.

▲ +0.7% YoY

95.97Index

Trend YoY growth is +0.7%, slowing by 1 bps/year over the last 25Y. Latest: +2.8%, 2.1 pp above trend, a 0.68σ deviation. The latest YoY reading is depressed by 2.0 pp due to an tough comparison base from Apr '25. At current levels, YoY would fall to -21.8% by Jul '26 as comparisons tighten.

Level

YoY %

y = 0.9% 1 bps/yr · t

Deviation from trend

Industrial Production Index

Broad industrial output drives electricity demand from factories, semiconductor plants, and reshoring.

▲ +0.4% YoY

102.5Index

Trend YoY growth is +0.4%, slowing by 1 bps/year over the last 25Y. Deviations have remained above trend for 11 consecutive periods. Latest: +1.4%, 96 bps above trend, a 0.36σ deviation. At current levels, YoY would fall to +0.6% by Jul '26 as comparisons tighten.

Level

YoY %

y = 0.5% 1 bps/yr · t

Deviation from trend

Utilities ETF (XLU)

Market's real-time pricing of the utility sector — rises when investors expect higher electricity demand and earnings.

▲ +13.5% YoY

$43.1

Trend YoY growth is +13.5%, accelerating by 68 bps/year over the last 9Y. Latest: +7.9%, 5.6 pp below trend, a 1.1σ deviation. The latest YoY reading is depressed by 5.0 pp due to an tough comparison base from Jun '25.

Level

YoY %

y = 7.4% + 68 bps/yr · t

Deviation from trend

Tightness

Vistra Corp

Independent power producer with gas and nuclear fleet — outperforms when grid scarcity drives power prices higher.

▲ +115.9% YoY

$154.8

Trend YoY growth is +115.9%, accelerating by 15.3 pp/year over the last 9Y. Deviations have remained below trend for 188 consecutive periods. Latest: -7.1%, 123.0 pp below trend, a 5.8σ deviation. The latest YoY reading is boosted by 19.6 pp due to an easy comparison base from Jun '25.

Level

YoY %

y = −17.0% + 15.3 pp/yr · t

Deviation from trend

Constellation Energy

Largest U.S. nuclear fleet operator — data center power deals signal tightness in clean baseload supply.

▲ +52.7% YoY

$265.7

Trend YoY growth is +52.7%, slowing by 7.5 pp/year over the last 3Y. Deviations have remained below trend for 40 consecutive periods. Latest: -14.8%, 67.4 pp below trend, a 3.0σ deviation. The latest YoY reading is boosted by 8.7 pp due to an easy comparison base from Jun '25.

Level

YoY %

y = 78.1% 7.5 pp/yr · t

Deviation from trend

NextEra Energy

Largest U.S. utility by market cap — tracks clean energy capacity buildout against rising load.

▲ +3.8% YoY

$83.7

Trend YoY growth is +3.8%, slowing by 2.6 pp/year over the last 9Y. Deviations have remained above trend for 150 consecutive periods. Latest: +21.8%, 18.0 pp above trend, a 1.8σ deviation. The latest YoY reading is boosted by 13.5 pp due to an easy comparison base from Jun '25.

Level

YoY %

y = 27.5% 2.6 pp/yr · t

Deviation from trend

Price

U.S. Average Retail Electricity Price

Best household and business pain metric — average cents per kilowatt-hour across all sectors.

▲ +3.6% YoY

0.19¢/kWh

Trend YoY growth is +3.6%, accelerating by 3 bps/year over the last 25Y. Deviations have remained above trend for 13 consecutive periods. Latest: +7.2%, 3.6 pp above trend, a 0.92σ deviation. The latest YoY reading is depressed by 1.1 pp due to an tough comparison base from Apr '25. At current levels, YoY would fall to +2.6% by Jul '26 as comparisons tighten.

Level

YoY %

y = 2.8% + 3 bps/yr · t

Deviation from trend

Henry Hub Natural Gas Spot Price

Natural gas often sets marginal power prices in the U.S. — the key input cost for electricity generation.

▲ 1.1x YoY

$3.1

Trend YoY growth is 1.1x, accelerating by 2 bps/year over the last 25Y. Deviations have remained below trend for 79 consecutive periods. Latest: 1.0x, 15.1 pp below trend, a 0.28σ deviation. The latest YoY reading is depressed by 27.8 pp due to an tough comparison base from May '25.

Level

YoY %

y = 11.5% + 2 bps/yr · t

Deviation from trend

WTI Crude Oil

Oil prices propagate through energy costs, transportation, and inflation — an upstream driver of electricity costs.

▲ 1.1x YoY

$97.6

Trend YoY growth is 1.1x, slowing by 36 bps/year over the last 25Y. Deviations have remained above trend for 59 consecutive periods. Latest: 1.6x, 53.1 pp above trend, a 1.7σ deviation. The latest YoY reading is boosted by 29.6 pp due to an easy comparison base from May '25.

Level

YoY %

y = 14.6% 36 bps/yr · t

Deviation from trend

Supply Response

Invesco Solar ETF (TAN)

Tracks solar energy companies — the fastest-growing source of new U.S. electricity capacity.

▲ +0.8% YoY

$71.1

Trend YoY growth is +0.8%, slowing by 5.0 pp/year over the last 9Y. Deviations have remained above trend for 167 consecutive periods. Latest: +123.5%, 122.7 pp above trend, a 5.2σ deviation. The latest YoY reading is boosted by 39.4 pp due to an easy comparison base from Jun '25.

Level

YoY %

y = 45.8% 5.0 pp/yr · t

Deviation from trend

iShares Global Clean Energy (ICLN)

Broad clean energy basket spanning solar, wind, and batteries — the market's read on supply buildout.

▲ +6.0% YoY

$23.0

Trend YoY growth is +6.0%, slowing by 2.0 pp/year over the last 9Y. Deviations have remained above trend for 168 consecutive periods. Latest: +86.4%, 80.4 pp above trend, a 6.1σ deviation. The latest YoY reading is boosted by 23.1 pp due to an easy comparison base from Jun '25.

Level

YoY %

y = 23.9% 2.0 pp/yr · t

Deviation from trend

Cameco (Uranium)

World's largest public uranium producer — rising price signals nuclear renaissance as baseload supply response.

▲ +77.3% YoY

$112.6

Trend YoY growth is +77.3%, accelerating by 9.1 pp/year over the last 9Y. Deviations have remained above trend for 109 consecutive periods. Latest: +93.9%, 16.6 pp above trend, a 0.41σ deviation. The latest YoY reading is boosted by 60.5 pp due to an easy comparison base from Jun '25.

Level

YoY %

y = −4.4% + 9.1 pp/yr · t

Deviation from trend