Solar electricity generation doubled between 2022 and 2024, now supplying 7 percent of the world's electricity. In the first half of 2025, wind and solar surpassed coal as the top source of power, driven largely by solar's rapid growth. Experts predict solar could generate 80 percent of global electricity by 2100.
The past few years have marked an astounding acceleration in solar power deployment. Total generation capacity doubled from 2022 to 2024, reaching 7 percent of global electricity supply. This momentum peaked in the first six months of 2025, when wind and solar together generated more power than coal for the first time, positioning renewables as the world's leading electricity source. The UK-based think tank Ember called this a "crucial turning point" in the energy transition, with solar accounting for 83 percent of the increase in global electricity demand that year and serving as the largest source of new electricity for three consecutive years.
Solar's appeal stems from its plummeting costs, with installation prices dropping 90 percent over the past 15 years. "Right now, silicon panels themselves are the same cost as plywood," says Sam Stranks at the University of Cambridge. A 2021 report from the UK think tank Carbon Tracker estimated that meeting all global energy needs with solar would require just 450,000 square kilometers of land—0.3 percent of the world's total. Kingsmill Bond, now at Ember and a report author, notes that "for most countries, there is plenty of space to deploy these technologies," despite trade-offs like competition with agriculture.
Challenges remain, including solar's 20 percent efficiency rate for silicon panels, compared to 90 percent for hydropower. Best-in-class cells reach 25 percent, with a practical limit of 28 percent, according to Jenny Nelson at Imperial College London. Tandem silicon-perovskite cells could push efficiencies to 35-37 percent. Stranks predicts they will dominate the market in 10 years, producing "50 per cent more power than today’s panels."
Intermittency is another hurdle, though battery costs have fallen 40 percent in the past two years, per BloombergNEF. Bond argues that "the only advantage that fossil fuels have over sunshine as a source for electricity is their storability," now largely addressed by batteries for 90 percent of needs. In sun-rich regions like India and Mexico, solar-plus-storage is increasingly viable. For northern areas with dark winters, wind and long-term storage like pumped hydro are essential, says Andrew Blakers at the Australian National University.
Political barriers persist, such as the Trump administration's cancellation of a major Nevada solar project earlier this month. Yet Bond believes the economic edge makes the shift unstoppable: "Incumbents can hold back the tide... but all it really means is that they then fall behind in the global race." The BRICS nations now produce over half of the world's solar electricity, and China's electrification rate hit 32 percent in 2023, surpassing the 24 percent in the US and Europe.
The International Energy Agency forecasts renewables doubling by decade's end but falling short of a tripling goal due to US policy shifts and grid integration issues. Still, Bond envisions solar supplying 80 percent of electricity by 2100, with 80 percent of total energy demand electrified.