The utilization of renewable energy as a future energy resource is drawing significant attention worldwide. The contribution of solar energy (including concentrating solar power (CSP) and solar photovoltaic (PV) power) to global electricity production, as one form of renewable energy sources, is generally still low, at 3.6%.
Despite the good press and the climate crisis being a consideration in energy generation today, solar power is not widely adopted. With it, however, comes the potential for significant energy production.
Solar power is likely to become the dominant electricity source worldwide by 2050. Mny-Jhee/Shutterstock In pursuit of the ambitious goal of reaching net-zero emissions, nations worldwide must expand their use of clean energy sources. In the case of solar energy, this change may already be upon us.
Solar energy is on track to make up more than half of global electricity generation by the middle of this century – even without more ambitious climate policies. This projection far exceeds any previous expectations.
Through a detailed and systematic literature survey, the present review study summarizes the world solar energy status, including concentrating solar power and solar PV power, along with published solar energy potential assessment articles for 235 countries and territories as the first step toward developing solar energy in these regions.
Renewable energy from solar and wind has found a considerable following within the population despite some large companies not seeing the benefit*. In affluent countries, renewable energy is a significant contributor to the country's power generation numbers. In the developing world, individuals are seeing the use of being independent of the national grid.*