Solar Capacity Jumps 33% in 2024, Yet LDCs and Africa Get Less Than 3% of Funding: ISA

Global solar installed capacity in 2024 reached 2,205 gigawatts (GW), with 548 GW added in a single year, leading to 33% increase.  The latest data shared in a recent International Solar Alliance (ISA) research report reveals 2,205 gigawatts (GW) capacity addition in 2024, with 548 GW added in a single year leadng to 33% increase.   

However, the solar divide continues to affect large-scale deployment. While solar deployment is expanding rapidly, growth remains uneven. In 2024, Asia-Pacific delivered 71% of new solar capacity, while the Middle East and Africa together contributed just around 1%, despite vast untapped solar potential.

The investment gap is even sharper. Nearly 80% of the USD 521 billion invested flowed to developed economies, India, and China. Meanwhile, least developed countries (LDCs) and small island developing states (SIDS) received less than 1% combined, while Africa received just 2%, highlighting deep structural barriers in markets that need solar the most.

This imbalance is not about resource potential but about financing conditions, grid readiness, and institutional capacity. Many high-irradiation countries face borrowing costs several times higher than OECD markets, raising tariffs and slowing project development. Closing this gap is central to building a resilient and inclusive energy transition.

Financing Gaps Persist

In its Global Solar Trends and Outlook 2025 report, the International Solar Alliance underscores that the next phase of solar growth must focus on correcting this imbalance through blended finance, solar facilities, and scalable digital platforms that unlock investment where it matters most.

The report notes that the Asia-Pacific region leads global asset financing, maintaining a strong and sustained growth trajectory. India’s renewable sector financing reached about USD 21 billion in 2024, the highest ever recorded, growing two-and-a-half times since 2020 and signalling strong investor confidence in the market’s long-term fundamentals.

Europe shows stable but fluctuating investment levels, while Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) demonstrate steady, though uneven, inflows. Africa, meanwhile, continues to build momentum despite structural hurdles.

India’s RE Sector Attracts Highest Investment

Global investment in solar energy has demonstrated unprecedented growth, surging from USD 146 billion in 2016 to USD 521 billion in 2024, and now accounting for 72% of total renewable energy investments.

This transformation marks solar’s evolution from a niche technology to the dominant force in the clean energy economy.

The surge has been propelled by rapid technological advances in photovoltaic manufacturing, expanding access to finance, and supportive global policy frameworks. The Asia-Pacific region leads this trajectory, driven by large-scale activity in China and India, while Europe and the Americas sustain momentum through targeted policy incentives and grid infrastructure investments.

India Funding Mobilisation

The research found over USD 39 million in anchor funding is currently in various stages of commitment, including USD 25 million from the Government of India, USD 10 million from ISA, and USD 4 million from Bloomberg and CIFF.

The goal is to scale the ASF facility to USD 200 million through blended capital from development finance institutions (DFIs), philanthropies, and sovereign investors. ISA is actively engaging with institutions, including the World Bank Group, NSIA, and GCF, as well as sovereign partners such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE, France, the UK, and Denmark.

The report also notes that changes in PV component prices continue to drive down the levelised cost of electricity (LCOE) and generation costs. Polysilicon prices have fallen sharply, dropping from USD 27.8 per kilogram at the beginning of 2023 to USD 4.7 per kilogram by the end of 2024, marking a 66% decline.

This rapid price correction has reshaped the economics of solar manufacturing, reduced material costs, and accelerated the affordability of photovoltaic deployment worldwide. The global weighted average cost of electricity from utility-scale solar has also declined significantly.

The competitiveness of solar is further reflected in tender outcomes. In 2024, the lowest average solar bids were recorded in Saudi Arabia at USD 0.0129 per kWh and in Israel at USD 0.020 per kWh, underscoring the global momentum toward cheaper and more efficient solar power generation.

FDRE Tenders Enabled CUF to Reach 40%

The report also notes implications for solar Capacity Utilisation Factor (CUF). For conventional solar bids, the CUF is typically set at a minimum of 17%, with developers required to maintain generation within a specific band around their declared CUF.

However, the study explores the storage integration, such as the Firm and Dispatchable Renewable Energy (FDRE) tenders, to enable CUF levels to reach 40% with the recent FDRE auctions in India mandating developers to maintain at 40% annual CUF.

CUF measures the ratio of actual energy produced to the theoretical maximum output if a plant operated at full capacity continuously. Utility-scale photovoltaic systems typically achieve 20–25% CUF, depending on factors such as resource quality, system design, operations and maintenance practices, and grid availability.

Seasonal studies in India show winter peaks and monsoon dips, while modelling by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory links long-term CUF performance to solar irradiance and system configuration.

For example, in the U.S. Southwest, a 50 MW bifacial tracker solar plant can achieve CUF in the low-to-mid-20% range, compared with about 18–19% for a nearby fixed-tilt monofacial plant, resulting in significant lifetime revenue and return differences.