In the last five years, China has increased its module manufacturing capacity from 130 gigawatts in 2018 to 397 gigawatts in 2022. Regions like Europe and North America plan to increase their production capacity of solar components in the next years, as they currently rely strongly on imports.
The latest government figures indicates UK solar photovoltaic (PV) generation capacity has reached 12,404 MW in December 2017. Sarnia Photovoltaic Power Plant near Sarnia, Ontario, was in September 2010 the world's largest photovoltaic plant with an installed capacity of 80 MW p. until surpassed by a plant in China.
Total capacity for residential homes was estimated at 100 MW by 2020, with further 200 MW installed in 2021 and another 500 MW installed in 2022, for a cumulative installed capacity of approximately 1400 MW at the end of 2023. In 2019, the Philippines generated a modest 1,246 GWh of solar energy.
Africa accounted for less than 1% of global installed solar capacity as of 2023, marking a stark disparity compared to the rest of the world. The sunniest countries have installed the least solar. Only 14% of global solar capacity installed as of 2023 (204 GW) was in markets with solar insolation above the global average.
It is forecast that module production capacity in the U.S. will increase from 29 gigawatts in 2023 to approximately 60 gigawatts in 2026. In Europe, the EU’s Solar Energy Strategy aims to increase the region’s solar PV manufacturing base.
Global solar installations increased by 87% year-on-year in 2023 as China continued to dominate growth, according to solar trade body SolarPower Europe (SPE). In its Global Market Outlook for Solar Power 2024-2028 report, SPE said a total of 447GW of new solar capacity was installed in 2023, up from 239GW in 2022, representing an 87% growth.
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European deployment of photovoltaics has slowed down considerably since the record year of 2011. This is mainly due to the strong decline of new installations in some major markets such as Germany and Italy, while the United Kingdom and some smaller European countries are still expected to break new records in 2014. Spain deployed about 350 MW (+18%) of concentrated solar power (CSP…