1. India surpassed Japan in 2023 as the world’s third-largest solar power generator.
2. Ember’s report highlighted solar energy’s record contribution to global electricity, reaching 5.5% in 2023.
3. Rapid solar energy deployment drove India’s ascent, marking significant progress in renewable energy adoption.
New Delhi, May 09: In 2023, India surged past Japan to claim the title of the world’s third-largest solar power generator, driven by rapid solar energy deployment, as revealed in a recent report by global energy think tank Ember.
Ember’s “Global Electricity Review” disclosed that solar energy’s share in global electricity production reached a record high of 5.5% in 2023.
India mirrored this trend, generating 5.8% of its electricity from solar sources, showcasing a significant leap from being ninth in solar energy deployment back in 2015.
According to Aditya Lolla, Director of Ember’s Asia Programme, the escalation in clean electricity production not only aids in reducing carbon emissions but is also crucial for meeting escalating electricity demands in an increasingly electrified economy and dissociating economic growth from emissions, essential steps in combatting climate change.
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For the 19th consecutive year, solar maintained its position as the fastest-growing electricity source globally, surpassing coal in new electricity additions by more than double in 2023.
India witnessed the world’s fourth-largest surge in solar generation in 2023, adding 18 terawatt-hours (TWh) to its solar capacity, following China (+156 TWh), the United States (+33 TWh), and Brazil (+22 TWh). Together, these four countries accounted for 75% of the global solar growth in 2023.
Ember’s data underscored a significant surge in global solar generation, which expanded over sixfold from 2015 to 2023. India mirrored this growth, with solar’s contribution to its electricity generation climbing from 0.5% in 2015 to 5.8% in 2023.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) projected solar energy to constitute 22% of global electricity generation by 2030 in its “Net Zero Emissions” scenario.
With electricity generation contributing nearly half of India’s annual carbon dioxide emissions, accelerating the transition to cleaner energy sources is imperative for the nation to align with both developmental and climate objectives.
India has pledged to achieve 50% cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel-based energy sources by 2030 as part of its national climate change strategy.
The historic agreement reached at the United Nations’ COP28 climate change conference in December 2023 aimed to triple global renewable energy capacity by 2030, a pivotal step in limiting the average temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius, as outlined in the 2015 political target to mitigate climate impacts.
India stands among the few nations aiming to triple their renewable capacity by 2030. Ember’s analysis emphasizes the need for a substantial increase in annual capacity additions to meet this ambitious target.
