Renewables Surge to Nearly 50% of Global Electricity Capacity in 2025, IRENA Data Shows

LONDON – Renewable power accounted for almost half of the world’s electricity capacity last year, driven by a record-breaking surge in solar installations, according to data released Tuesday by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).

Global renewable power capacity reached a record 5,149 gigawatts (GW) by the end of 2025, an increase of 692 GW from 2024. The growth was led by a dramatic leap in solar capacity, which expanded by 511 GW to reach 2,392 GW, solidifying its position as the world’s largest renewable energy source. In comparison, fossil fuel power capacity grew by just 116 GW over the same period.

As a result, renewables’ share of global electricity capacity rose to 49.4% in 2025, up from 46.3% the previous year, the data showed.

Energy Security Lessons from the Middle East Crisis

The release of the data comes against a backdrop of heightened geopolitical tensions. With the ongoing conflict in the Middle East having triggered record monthly gains in oil markets, some industry groups have lobbied for increased investment in fossil fuels. However, analysts note that countries with higher shares of renewable capacity have been largely insulated from the latest market shocks.

“The Middle East crisis has, in some ways, dramatically confirmed that energy security is not something we can be sure of with fossil fuels,” said Francesco La Camera, Director-General of IRENA. “Each price spike reminds us that reliance on volatile commodity markets carries systemic risk.”

On Track for 2030 Tripling Goal?

At the COP28 climate summit in Dubai in 2023, more than 100 countries agreed to triple renewable energy capacity by 2030 as part of efforts to meet global climate targets. La Camera said last year’s additions mean the sector is moving closer to that goal, though not yet fully on pace.

“This 700 gigawatts of annual growth means that we may be quite close in 2030 to the tripling target not exactly the triple, but very close to it,” he said.

The data shows the annual growth rate for renewable capacity rose to 15.5% in 2025, up from approximately 15.1% in 2024. However, renewable energy groups noted last year that meeting the 2030 tripling target would require sustained annual growth of 16.6% from 2025 to 2030 a threshold the world has not yet crossed.

Wind, Generation Data, and the Capacity Caveat

New wind energy installations added 159 GW in 2025, bringing total installed wind capacity to 1,291 GW.

It is important to note that capacity measures the maximum output power plants can produce, but actual generation is often lower due to maintenance, refueling (for nuclear or fossil plants), or, in the case of renewables, periods of low wind or sunlight. Despite this, clean energy sources are making significant inroads into actual electricity generation.

Separate data from the think tank Ember, published last year, showed that renewable energy sources generated more electricity than coal globally for the first time during the first half of 2025. In that period, renewables provided an estimated 34% of global electricity. Ember has yet to publish its full-year generation data for 2025, but early indicators suggest the trend has continued.

Outlook

With solar leading the charge and wind energy growing steadily, the world appears on the cusp of a renewables-dominated power sector though closing the remaining gap to the 2030 tripling target will require accelerated deployment, grid upgrades, and policy support in the years immediately ahead.

 

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