Solar Set to Break Another Record This Year

Solar capacity additions this year will likely break their previous record, coming in at 593 GW, according to climate think tank Ember.

Ember analysts noted that the total number of new additions would exceed expectations but urged countries to “make the most of the high levels of solar capacity being built today and ensure the continued build-out of capacity in the coming years.”

In percentage terms, this year’s new solar capacity additions would be a 29% increase, which is quite a slowdown from last year’s annual surge of 87% in 2022. Still, this year’s increase comes from more than just the usual solar power fans, such as Germany and China. This year, according to Ember, solar is growing in new locations such as Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.

This may be due to a price drop in solar modules amid abundant supply. Per BloombergNEF, prices have dropped as low as $0.10 per watt, which has been of significant benefit for solar installation developers. It has not, however, been of significant benefit to module manufacturers.

The increase in solar capacity has also created problems, chief among them the danger of negative electricity prices as the modules overproduce during periods of the lowest demand, forcing wholesale electricity markets into negative price territory.

In Europe, this year saw a record number of hours during which electricity prices were negative, at 7,841 as of mid-September, the Financial Times reported last week. “Everyone knows that if you produce too much oil, the price will crash and producers lose money. And there’s nothing different in renewable energy and power either,” Bjarne Schieldrop, chief commodities analyst at Swedish bank SEB, told the FT at the time.

Ember believes the solution to this problem is at hand, in the form of more grid infrastructure and batteries. ““The key will be to ensure that countries have sufficient grid capacity to transport power to where it is needed, as well as develop battery storage capacity to complement solar outside of the sunniest hours,” the think tank said.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com

• UBS Lowers Q4 Oil Forecast by $8 Per Barrel
• The Real Reason Kamala Harris Won’t Ban Fracking
• Italy Backs Energy Transition Funding for Developing Economies