The world installed a record 814 GW of solar and wind power in 2025.

According to Ember, a global energy think tank, the world reached a record increase in solar and wind power capacity, adding 814 GW in total in 2025, which is a 17% rise compared to the previous year. The report notes that Turkey's capacity reached 25.1 GW for photovoltaics and 14.8 GW for wind energy.

New findings from Ember’s interactive tool indicate that the total global installed capacity for wind and solar power stood at 4.17 TW at the end of last year, underscoring the rapid growth of these two electricity sources.

The combined increase of 814 GW in 2025 represented a 17% gain over the previous year. Photovoltaics led the way in new capacity, with a nearly four-to-one advantage over wind. However, wind turbines produced an average of 2.3 times more energy than an equivalent solar capacity.

Solar power additions reached 647 GW, reflecting an 11% increase from 2024, bringing the cumulative capacity to 2.87 TW.

Wind energy deployment grew by 47% to 167 GW, with total capacity reaching 1.3 TW by the end of December.

The global dataset represents 93% of solar capacity and 92% of wind capacity.

The new renewable capacity added in 2025 can generate approximately 1.05 PWh of electricity annually, sufficient to replace over one-seventh of global gas production or 1.8 times Qatar’s yearly LNG exports.

At current market rates, this translates to an annual cost of USD 138 billion for gas imports.

Leonard Heberer, Ember's Data Analyst, stated, “The scale and rapidity of solar expansion are unprecedented in the energy sector. Coupled with wind’s growth, these technologies are set to become the foundation of global electricity supply. Their expansion will enhance energy independence, decrease dependence on unstable fossil fuel supply chains, and protect consumers from price fluctuations in fossil fuels caused by geopolitical instability.”

In the European Union, photovoltaics grew by 65 GW, an 18.6% increase, which is slower than the 25% growth of the previous year, when the increase was also 5 GW higher. The cumulative capacity reached 415 GW in 2025, while the wind sector grew just 6%, reaching 247 GW, consistent with 2024’s performance.

In the region tracked by Balkan Green Energy News, the report includes Turkey, where photovoltaic capacity rose by 24.3% to 25.1 GW last year, with an additional 1 GW added by the end of February. Wind power grew by 14.7% to reach 14.8 GW, and last month it hit 15 GW.

By the end of 2025, Turkey had 286 W of solar power per capita, compared to the EU's 924 W and the global average of 349 W. In terms of wind energy, Turkey had 168 W per capita, while the European Union had 549 W, and the global average was 158 W.