Booming solar power growth in five countries — led by China — is putting the world on track to meet a major climate target.
Solar is projected to add more than 590 gigawatts of new installations globally by the end of this year, a 29 percent jump over 2023, when it surged by 87 percent, according to a new report by Ember, an energy think tank.
“The massive step up in solar capacity installations in 2023 and 2024 has shifted perceptions around solar’s role in the energy transition,” the report says.
It estimates that this year’s solar additions will outpace the amount of all new coal power since 2010. Growth estimates for the remainder of the decade by some analysts now put the world on track to meet a pledge to triple renewable energy capacity by 2030, the report adds, referring to an agreement reached at the global climate talks last year in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates.
