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Percentage of renewable energy, growth of it, and how much is solar, hydroelectric, and other
Executive Summary
Global renewable power capacity expanded rapidly in 2024–2025, with reports converging on a record annual growth rate of about 15.1% and total installed renewable capacity near 4,440–4,448 GW, driven overwhelmingly by solar and wind additions; solar alone jumped by roughly 32% to about 1,865 GW, and solar-plus-wind accounted for roughly 96% of net additions in 2024 [1] [2]. Despite this surge, the world remains short of the pace needed to triple capacity by 2030, which requires ~16.6% annual expansion; current trajectories imply a persistent shortfall even though Asia—particularly China—accounts for the majority of new builds [3] [4] [2]. These figures are corroborated by multiple institutional reports showing consistent trends on capacity growth, solar dominance, and regional concentration, while electricity-generation metrics and emissions trends highlight important caveats about demand growth and fossil-fuel rebounds [5] [6] [7].
1. What everyone is claiming — fast growth, solar in the lead, hydro still large but less dynamic
International and independent trackers report a coherent set of claims: renewable power capacity grew by ~15.1% in 2024, adding roughly 580–585 GW, bringing global capacity to about 4.44 TW, and solar was the single largest contributor, adding the biggest share and growing roughly 32% year-on-year to around 1,865 GW [1] [3] [2]. Reports also emphasize that wind grew meaningfully (double-digit percent in some datasets) and that hydropower remains the largest single source of renewable electricity historically—rebounding in capacity to roughly 1,283 GW in one report—yet hydro’s year-on-year additions were far smaller than solar’s and wind’s [2] [6]. These core claims are repeated across IRENA, IEA, and independent think-tank datasets, establishing a clear picture: capacity growth is strong, concentrated in solar and Asia, and hydropower is important but not the engine of recent expansion [1] [3] [2].
2. How the capacity numbers translate into electricity generation — more clean power but mixed emissions signals
Capacity gains translated into record generation increases: clean sources supplied about 40% of global electricity in recent reporting, and renewables added a record 858 TWh of generation in 2024, driven by solar’s rapid trajectory which doubled generation over three years to exceed 2,000 TWh [5]. At the same time, several reports note that rising electricity demand—driven by heatwaves and broader economic growth—has boosted fossil generation and pushed power-sector emissions to a record in the near term, meaning that renewable expansion has not yet guaranteed emissions declines in absolute terms [5]. In country-level data, renewables provided roughly 30% of global electricity generation in 2023, with hydropower still generating more TWh than any other renewable source in that year, albeit with slight annual declines reported in some datasets [6] [8]. The key fact is that capacity growth greatly improves clean generation share, but demand and fuel-switching dynamics complicate emissions outcomes [5] [6].
3. Regional concentration and the China effect — Asia is the growth engine
Multiple datasets point to Asia as the dominant source of additions, with China alone contributing a very large share—estimates put its contribution to global added capacity in 2024 in the range of about 60–72% of global additions, depending on the dataset—and China plus India and Korea leading solar deployment efforts [1] [3] [2]. This regional concentration means global headline growth can mask uneven distribution: regions such as Central America and the Caribbean accounted for minimal shares of new capacity, while South America still relies heavily on hydropower for high renewable shares in its national mixes [1] [6]. Reports emphasize these geographic imbalances as critical to both achieving global targets and planning grid integration: if Asia slows, global growth could decelerate markedly, and policymakers outside Asia face different technical and financing barriers [3] [2].
4. The target gap — record growth, but not yet fast enough to triple capacity by 2030
All institutions converge on a central narrative: 2024’s record additions are impressive but insufficient. To reach the IRENA/UN target of roughly 11.17 TW by 2030 (tripling installed renewable power), annual growth must average about 16.6% from 2025–2030; current observed growth of ~15.1% leaves a persistent shortfall and implies the world must accelerate deployment further to close the gap [1] [4]. Scenario analyses from the IEA and others suggest solar and wind—particularly solar PV, forecast to supply the bulk of new capacity through 2030—can deliver most of that acceleration if policy support, manufacturing scale-up, and grid integration investments are sustained; yet models still flag supply-chain, permitting, and system-integration constraints as potential bottlenecks [7] [9]. The critical fact is that meeting 2030 targets requires not just continuation of 2024’s pace but measurable acceleration and broader geographic diffusion of builds.
5. Reconciling differences and what’s omitted — definitions, capacity vs. generation, and timing
Reports differ in phrasing and metrics—some emphasize installed capacity (GW) while others focus on generation (TWh)—creating apparent discrepancies that are resolvable when units are aligned: capacity measures system size, generation measures usage, and both matter for climate impact [1] [5]. Hydropower’s role appears larger in generation-focused accounts because hydro plants typically have higher capacity factors; capacity-focused reports show solar’s speedier expansion but lower per-unit generation compared with hydro in many systems [6] [2]. Timing and baseline years also matter: figures for 2023 vs 2024 vs mid‑2025 snapshots produce variation, and several analyses warn that short-term fossil generation rebounds can temporarily offset emissions benefits from renewables even as longer-term decarbonization accelerates [5] [4].
6. Bottom line for decision-makers — scale solar fast, shore up grids, and diversify geography
The consolidated evidence is clear: solar and wind are now the central drivers of renewable capacity growth, delivering the bulk of new GW additions and reshaping the global mix, while hydropower stays important for steady generation and storage value [2] [6]. To close the 2030 gap, policymakers must accelerate deployment beyond 2024’s record pace, expand build activity outside Asia, and invest in grid flexibility and integration to ensure rising renewable capacity translates into emissions reductions rather than demand-driven fossil rebounds. These are not predictions but operational imperatives grounded in the recent data and scenario projections across the institutional reports [3] [7] [9].