Many countries and territories have installed significant solar power capacity into their electrical grids to supplement or provide an alternative to conventional energy sources. Solar power plants use one of two technologies:
Solar power is a major contributor to electricity supply in Australia. As of September 2024, Australia's over 3.92 million solar PV installations had a combined capacity of 37.8 GW photovoltaic (PV) solar power. In 2019, 59 solar PV projects with a combined capacity of 2,881 MW were either under construction, constructed or due to start construction having reached financial closure. Solar accounted for 19.6% of Australia's electrical energy production in the National Electricity Market and South West Interconnected System in 2024.
Solar power in India is an essential source of renewable energy and electricity generation in India. Since the early 2000s, India has increased its solar power significantly with the help of various government initiatives and rapid awareness about the importance of renewable energy and sustainability in the society. In order to decrease carbon dioxide emissions, reduce reliance on fossil fuels, with coal being the primary source of electricity for the nation at present, bolster employment, economy and make India energy independent by making self-reliant on renewable energy, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy was formed in 1982 to look after the country's activities to promote these goals. These collaborative efforts, along with global cooperation with the help of International Solar Alliance (ISA) since 2015 for promoting solar energy worldwide while also taking care of India, have made India one of the world's fastest adopters of solar power, making it the third-largest producer of solar power globally as of 2024, after China and the United States.
For solar power, South Asia has the ideal combination of both high solar insolation and a high density of potential customers.
Solar power has a small but growing role in electricity production in the United Kingdom.
Solar power includes solar farms as well as local distributed generation, mostly on rooftops and increasingly from community solar arrays. In 2023, utility-scale solar power generated 164.5 terawatt-hours (TWh), or 3.9% of electricity in the United States. Total solar generation that year, including estimated small-scale photovoltaic generation, was 238 TWh.
Solar power has been growing rapidly in the U.S. state of California because of high insolation, community support, declining solar costs, and a renewable portfolio standard which requires that 60% of California's electricity come from renewable resources by 2030, with 100% by 2045. Much of this is expected to come from solar power via photovoltaic facilities or concentrated solar power facilities.
New Jersey has over 4,700 MW of installed solar power capacity as of January 2024, which provides more than 7% of the state's electricity consumption. The's state's growth of solar power is aided by a renewable portfolio standard that requires that 22.5% of New Jersey's electricity come from renewable resources by 2021 and 50% by 2030, by incentives provided for generation of solar power, and by one of the most favorable net metering standards in the country, allowing customers of any size array to use net metering, although generation may not exceed annual demand. As of 2018, New Jersey has the sixth-largest installed solar capacity of all U.S. states and the largest installed solar capacity of the Northeastern States.
The energy sector in Hawaii has rapidly adopted solar power due to the high costs of electricity, and good solar resources, and has one of the highest per capita rates of solar power in the United States. Hawaii's imported energy costs, mostly for imported petroleum and coal, are three to four times higher than the mainland, so Hawaii has motivation to become one of the highest users of solar energy. Hawaii was the first state in the United States to reach grid parity for photovoltaics. Its tropical location provides abundant ambient energy.
Renewable energy in Pakistan is a relatively underdeveloped sector; however, in recent years, there has been more and more interest to explore renewable energy resources for the energy production. Around 10.57% of Pakistan’s total installed power generation capacity comes renewables. Most of Pakistan's renewable energy comes from hydroelectricity. As per the vision of the Prime Minister, there is the aim to “induct 20% of RE by the year 2025 and 30% of RE by the year 2030.”
Solar power in Indiana has been growing in recent years due to new technological improvements and a variety of regulatory actions and financial incentives, particularly a 30% federal tax credit for any size project.
Solar power in Alaska has been primarily used in remote locations, such as the Nenana Teen Center near Fairbanks, where long summer days provide most of the electricity generated. In 2015, Alaska ranked 45th in installed solar among U.S. states. Rooftop solar panels could provide 23% of all electricity used in Alaska. Net metering is available for PV systems up to 25 kW but is limited to 1.5% of average demand. IREC best practices, based on experience, recommends no limits to net metering, individual or aggregate, and perpetual roll over of kWh credits.
Solar power in West Virginia on rooftops can provide 23% of all electricity used in West Virginia from 6,300 MW of solar panels, but West Virginia will be the last state in the United States to reach grid parity - the point where solar panels are cheaper than grid electricity - without incentives, due to the low cost of electricity - about $0.062/kWh. The point where grid parity is reached is a product of the average insolation and the average cost of electricity. At $0.062/kWh and 4.3 sun-hours/day, solar panels would need to come down to ~$1,850/kW installed to achieve grid parity. The first state in the US to achieve grid parity was Hawaii. Solar power's favorable carbon footprint compared to fossil fuels is a major motivation for expanding renewable energy in the state, especially when compared to coal to generate electrical power.
Solar power in Iowa is limited but growing, with 137 megawatts (MW) installed by the end of 2019 and 27 MW installed during that year, ranking the state 40th among U.S. states. Iowa also generated 0.23% of the state's total electricity production in 2019 from solar energy; an amount sufficient to power over 17,000 Iowa homes. The state's early position as a major wind-power provider may have limited early large-scale solar investment.
Solar power in South Dakota has high potential but little practical application. The state ranked 50th among U.S. states in installed solar polar in 2015 with no utility-scale or large commercial systems. Photovoltaic panels on rooftops can provide 38.7% of all electricity used in South Dakota using 3,800 MW of solar panels. The state is ranked 14th in the country in solar power potential, and 4th in wind potential.
Solar power in Minnesota expanded significantly in the early 2010s as a result of the cost decrease of photovoltaics and favorable policies. By 2016, it began to grow quickly.
Solar power in Cyprus benefits from over 3,300 hours of sunlight annually, giving it the highest potential in the European Union (EU).
Solar power in Chile is an increasingly important source of energy. Total installed photovoltaic (PV) capacity in Chile reached 8.36 GW in 2023. Solar energy provided 19.9% of national electricity generation in Chile in 2023, compared to less than 0.1% in 2013.
The Quaid-e-Azam Solar Park is a photovoltaic power station in Bahawalpur, Punjab, Pakistan, named in honor of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the Founder of Pakistan. It is a 400 MW solar facility spanning an area of 8 km2 and hosting 1.6 million solar modules. The initial phase of the project was constructed by the Government of Punjab through a 100% owned subsidiary QA Solar in May 2015 at a cost of $131 million. On 5 May 2015, the then Prime Minister of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif inaugurated the first 100 MW project and dedicated it to the nation. Subsequent expansion was done in public-private partnership with Appolo Solar Development Pakistan Limited, Best Green Energy Pakistan Limited and Crest Energy Pakistan Limited each installing a 100 MW unit. The next phase of 100 MW will be installed by Zorlu Solar Pakistan (Pvt.) Limited, making it a 500 MW facility. Total planned capacity of the solar park is 1,000 MW.
