Clean electricity reached a record 40.9% share of global generation in 2024, according to the Global Electricity Review published by Ember. This milestone was largely driven by solar power, which, for the third consecutive year, was the world’s largest source of new electricity, contributing 474 TWh to the grid.
Solar generation doubled in just three years, reaching 2,131 TWh, becoming the fastest-growing and largest source of new power (+29%) in 2024. “Solar power has become the engine of the global energy transition,” Ember states, highlighting its low cost, rapid deployment, and increasing integration with storage systems.
Record-setting solar capacity build-out
In 2024, global solar capacity additions hit 585 GW, 30% more than in 2023 and over twice the volume installed in 2022. Total solar capacity doubled to 2 TW in just two years. Ember notes that “this rate of growth is unprecedented in the history of any energy source”.
Growth was not limited to developed countries. China accounted for 53% of the global increase in solar generation, helping curb further coal expansion. Brazil, meanwhile, boosted its solar output by 45%, reaching a 10% share of its electricity mix. Chile generated 22% of its power from solar, and emerging markets such as Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, and Morocco recorded record imports of solar panels.
Renewables covered most of the increase in electricity demand
Renewable sources added a record 858 TWh to the global power system in 2024, covering 73% of the annual increase in electricity demand, which reached 30,856 TWh (+4%). Hydropower recovered from 2023’s droughts, adding 182 TWh, while wind generation also increased by 182 TWh.
Eighty countries generated more than 50% of their electricity from clean sources, and 47 surpassed 75%. Overall, renewables and nuclear power met 79% of the increase in electricity demand, with fossil fuels accounting for the remaining 21%, mostly due to heat waves.
Heatwaves: The key driver behind fossil resurgence
Despite the rise in clean power, record-high temperatures in 2024 led to a 1.4% increase in fossil fuel generation, equivalent to +245 TWh — similar to the two previous years. Ember highlights: “Without the impact of heatwaves, fossil generation would have risen by just 0.2%.”
This spike was most evident in China, India and the United States, where coal and gas filled the demand gap. In contrast, the European Union reduced fossil fuel generation by 75 TWh despite a slight uptick in demand.
Battery storage: the rising backbone of flexibility
The cost of lithium-ion batteries dropped 20% in 2024, reaching $115 USD/kWh — the steepest annual decline since 2017. This triggered 69 GW of new storage capacity installations, nearly doubling the global total.
Ember remarks that “solar and batteries combined are now an unstoppable force”. In California, battery systems supplied up to 20% of evening peak demand, displacing gas. In Europe, co-located battery-solar projects are already outcompeting gas-fired plants.
Outlook: a decade defined by clean energy leadership
The clean generation is expected to grow by 9% annually through 2030, with solar rising by 21% per year and wind by 13%, according to BloombergNEF and GWEC. This growth would accommodate a global demand increase of up to 4.1% annually — even higher than IEA forecasts.
China and India are shifting the global trajectory after having accounted for 95% of fossil fuel generation growth between 2020 and 2024. Both countries are now scaling up solar and wind at record speed. China alone installed 277 GWac of new solar capacity in 2024, while India doubled its solar build-out year-on-year.
“The fossil growth era is coming to an end,” concluded Ember. If trends continue, global fossil fuel generation could decline by 6.3% by 2029, led by the clean power acceleration in China, India and other emerging economies.
“Solar power is now so affordable that it can transform entire power systems within a year,” Ember notes, citing Pakistan’s doubling of solar imports in 2024 to counter soaring fossil fuel costs.
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