Solar photovoltaic electricity production in the European Union 2012-2024

In 2024, the European Union had a solar photovoltaic electricity generation of *** terawatt hours. Since 2012, solar power production in the region has grown *********. Germany, Spain, and Italy are the countries with the largest electricity production from solar photovoltaics among EU members. Germany alone generated more than ** terawatt hours of solar electricity in 2024. 

Solar PV capacity in the EU

Aside from being the biggest producer, Germany is the European country with the largest photovoltaic capacity. In 2024, Germany had more than ** gigawatts of cumulative solar capacity installed across the country. However, in terms of photovoltaic capacity per capita, the Netherlands ranked first that year with roughly ***** watts per inhabitant. Overall, the European Union had a total photovoltaic capacity of *** gigawatts in 2024. 

The European photovoltaic manufacturing landscape

As of May 2025, there were **solar module manufacturers operating in the European Union, Norway, and Switzerland. In total, the region had a module manufacturing capacity of ** gigawatts. Although the industry is currently small, European companies plan to increase their production of solar components. Today, Asian manufacturers dominate the solar PV landscape, accounting for more than ** percent of the global photovoltaic equipment production capacity. ***** alone produces more than ************** of these components. In 2023, the Asian country reached a module production of roughly *** gigawatts.