Solar represented 70% of newly installed generating capacity worldwide in 2024
New IEEE report tracks PV penetration and the growing role of grid battery storage. Approximately 70% of newly installed global electricity generating capacity for 2024 came from PV, with record installations in China (278 GW) and the U.S. (38 GW).
October 10, 2025 Michael Puttré
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The latest edition of IEEE’s annual report on the role of solar in the global renewable energy transition shows the steady and increasing dominance of new solar power generating capacity in the world’s electricity mix. The percentage of global electricity generated by PV was 6.8% for 2024, said the report, to be published in a future issue of the IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics. The authors also include data highlighting the increasingly important role of grid-based battery energy storage systems (BESS) relative to pumped hydro storage.
According to the report, while coal remains the single largest source of electricity generation in the world, and its total capacity continues to expand, new growth from solar represents the vast majority of added generation. Approximately 70% of newly installed global electricity generating capacity for 2024 came from PV, with record installations in China (278 GW) and the U.S. (38 GW). Global PV installed capacity at the end of 2024 exceeded 2 TW, with China alone accounting for 1 TW installed.
Increases in all generating sources can be expected, the authors say, due to demand from industrialization, electrification efforts and regional economic development. In addition, increasing electricity demand for artificial intelligence and machine learning applications is an important variable that is difficult to predict. The persistence of fossil-fueled sources can be expected, the authors said, if only to avoid blackouts.
“Growth in the contributions from renewables is rising at a rapid rate, particularly since 2010, but is not yet of sufficient magnitude to meet the overall growth in demand,” the authors wrote.
At the same time, the pie charts above illustrate that while global electricity generation continues to be dominated by fossil sources, but renewable sources collectively represented by wind, solar and hydropower are shaping the future electricity generating mix, with PV dominating. Furthermore, the authors say, increasing electrification and the future retirement of legacy fossil-fueled sources could significantly increase in the growth rate of solar and wind.
According to the report, when solar, wind, nuclear and hydro are combined, these “low-carbon” sources provided 40% of the world’s electricity generated in 2024. This increase has been driven primarily by the growth in solar and wind, with hydro growing slightly and nuclear remaining relatively flat. The authors point out that both wind and solar are approaching generation comparable to that of nuclear plants and are likely exceed their output in the next year or two.
Last year, the annual IEEE PV report introduced data comparing electricity storage using pumped hydro and BESS. The latest report shows rapid growth BESS for grid-scale storage compared with pumped hydro.
According to the report, global capacity of grid-scale BESS was 126.1 GW in 2024, with China hosting 60% of the total at 75.2 GW. The U.S. had 25.7 GW installed and Europe collectively had 11.1 GW. In the U.S., grid-scale BESS capacity exceeded pumped hydro capacity for the first time in 2024, and a similar transition can be expected globally this year or in 2026, the report said.
Overall, the IEEE report shows that 2024 was a banner year for PV generation and BESS storage. With demand for electricity increasing worldwide, the contribution of PV can be expected to grow, as shown by the trends. At the end of 2024, the report said, approximately 19 countries had PV-electricity generation levels in excess of 10% on their national grids. Additional research and development in PV cell and battery technologies can help sustain this momentum
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