China’s solar capacity to surpass 500 GW by year-end

Its installed solar capacity is expected to exceed 1,000 GW by the end of 2026.

China is expected to double its new solar capacity this year to 150 gigawatts (GW), bringing its total installed capacity to over 500 GW, according to a report by Rystad Energy.

The country’s capacity, however, is seen to double in the next three years to reach 1,000 GW by the end of 2025. It is expected to add 165 GW in 2024, and another 175 GW in 2025, reaching a cumulative solar capacity of nearly 900 GW by the end of 2025.

“China’s national program to build out solar capacity, launched in June 2021, has led to a significant boost in large-scale projects. Although most distributed PV systems are installed on rooftops, not all of them are used for residential purposes,” said Yicong Zhu, senior renewables and power analyst at Rystad Energy. 

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“Around two-thirds of the distributed PV capacity in China is utilized by the commercial and industrial sectors and these projects can vary from tens to more than 100 MW,” he added.

Rystad Energy noted that the country has invested around $15.8b in solar PV construction in the first half of 2023, 3.4 times higher than the investment in thermal power, and the highest amongst power generation sources, citing the National Energy Administration.

China’s 500 GW will account for the highest share in the global capacity at 40%, followed by the US at 12% with 145 GW.