2016 marked another record solar boom year with a 50 percent growth
in solar additions worldwide totaling 76.6 GW of installed capacity,
according to SolarPower Europe's report on Wednesday entitled Global
Market Outlook for Solar Power 2017-2021
There is now a total
worldwide solar power generation capacity of 306.5 gigawatts (GW) and
demand should continue to rise through to 2021, SolarPower's report
shows.
"The quickly decreasing cost of solar continues to improve
its competitiveness and is a major driver for solar energy’s global
success story. All solar tenders awarded since 2016 are lower than the
price guarantee the U.K. government signed for the Hinkley Point C
nuclear power plant last year," the report indicated.
A new
world-record low 25-year solar power supply contract was awarded in Abu
Dhabi in 2016 for US$24.40 per megawatt-hours or $0.024 per
kilowatt-hour (kWh).
Christian Westermeier, president of
SolarPower Europe said that they have never seen more solar power being
installed before in a single year than in 2016.
"For the first
time, solar left behind its renewable energy peer, wind, in terms of
annual installations. This proves the versatility and increasing
cost-effectiveness of solar power," he added.
James Watson, CEO of SolarPower Europe said the company foresees that solar will continue its growth in 2017.
"Despite
the gigantic leap that resulted in the more than 50 percent growth year
on year of annual solar installations in 2016, there is a good chance
that the market could even pass the 80 gigawatt mark in 2017," he added.
(Anadolu Agency)