has averaged an impressive 42% over the last decade. It has the world’s largest wind and solar project in the pipeline, which could add another 400,000MW to its clean energy capacity.įollowing China from afar is the U.S., which recently surpassed 100,000MW of solar power capacity after installing another 50,000MW in the first three months of 2021. What’s more, the country is showing no signs of slowing down. Here’s a snapshot of solar power capacity by country at the beginning of 2021: CountryĬhina is the undisputed leader in solar installations, with over 35% of global capacity. The Solar Power Leaderboardįrom the Americas to Oceania, countries in virtually every continent (except Antarctica) added more solar to their mix last year. This includes both solar photovoltaic (PV) and concentrated solar power capacity. The above infographic uses data from the International Renewable Energy Agency ( IRENA) to map solar power capacity by country in 2021. While the growth in renewables was strong across the board, solar power led from the front with 127 gigawatts installed in 2020, its largest-ever annual capacity expansion. The world is adopting renewable energy at an unprecedented pace, and solar power is the energy source leading the way.ĭespite a 4.5% fall in global energy demand in 2020, renewable energy technologies showed promising progress.
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