Solar just keeps winning on every metric! The International Energy Agency (IEA) released their 2026 Global Energy Review and it provides a good look into the use and generation of energy on a global scale. Growth of energy demand slowed slightly to 1.3% while the growth in renewables is quite noteworthy. Last year solar was the single biggest contributor to energy supply and this marks the first time that renewables have led primary energy growth. It’s not just solar where the renewable success is coming, it’s across the board with renewables being the preferred energy source.
The increase in generation from renewables and nuclear power in 2025 exceeded the total growth in electricity supply. The 2025 increase in solar PV of 600 terawatt-hours (TWh) was the largest-ever electricity generation increase by any source in one year, outside of periods of post-crisis recovery. The rise in solar PV alone met around 70% of electricity generation growth. Renewables combined now virtually match total global generation from coal. In the European Union, the share of solar PV and wind reached 30% in 2025, surpassing that of fossil fuels for the first time. Electricity generation from natural gas and from nuclear power continued to grow at the global level in 2025.
