Africa's Solar Boom: 42 Growth Expected In 2025

The Global Solar Council estimated that the continent added 2.4GW of solar generation capacity in 2024, slightly less than the year before, which it blamed on the slackening rate of installations in South Africa after a bumper year in 2023.

The industry lobby group, in a report published on Wednesday, predicted 42 growth in new installations in 2025, in part because it expects several important projects that were delayed in 2024 to be brought online this year.

"Africa is expected to cumulatively install 23GW of new solar capacity between 2025 to 2028, more than doubling its 2024 cumulative installed capacity in only four years," it said, arguing that fuel price swings and costly electricity make solar a good option for the region.

While South Africa and Egypt are the largest markets, there's also been rapid growth in West Africa, with Ghana nearly quadrupling its installations to 94MW of solar power. Burkina Faso grew its solar by more than 120 last year to 87MW, while Nigeria installed about 73MW, according to the council.