Electricity demand and supply trends

2025 was another record year for global solar growth, with generation rising by 636 TWh, equivalent to twice the total electricity demand of the United Kingdom. Global solar growth in 2025 alone exceeded the electricity that could be generated from all LNG exports through the Strait of Hormuz that year (81 million tonnes, or around 550 TWh of gas-fired electricity). The solar increase in 2025 was 33% higher than in 2024 (+479 TWh) and almost double that of 2023 (+331 TWh).

Solar’s growth of 636 TWh was more than three times as large as wind’s, the next largest increase in 2025, at 205 TWh. Solar generation growth in 2025 was nearly 18 times that of gas (+36 TWh). Other than coal’s post-Covid rebound in 2021, the 2025 rise in solar generation was the largest of any electricity source ever.

Global solar generation overtook wind for the first time in 2025, reaching a new record high of 2,778 TWh. Solar’s output in 2025 was almost 11 times higher than in 2015 (256 TWh). In the same period, its share rose from 1.1% to 8.7%. Over the past decade, solar generation has doubled roughly every three years. In the last three years (2023-2025), solar met 50% of global demand growth.

Solar accounted for 68% of all renewable capacity additions from 2019 to 2024. This is partly due to the sharp drop in solar panel prices, which fell by 90% between 2015 and 2024. 2025 was once again a record year for solar capacity additions with 647 GW added globally.

China continues to record the world’s largest annual increases in solar generation, adding 336 TWh in 2025, despite the end of some incentives and a shift to a market-driven pricing model in June 2025. In 2025, China accounted for more than half of the global rise in solar generation, for the second year in a row. Solar generation in China rose 40% year-on-year in 2025, following 44% growth in 2024.

The United States recorded the second-largest increase in solar generation globally in 2025 (+85 TWh, +28%), which met 65% of the country’s growth in electricity demand. The largest solar rises occurred in states where electricity demand increased the most. Solar’s surge in the US was driven by continued expansion of utility-scale projects, with smaller contributions from behind-the-meter systems.

India recorded the third-largest increase in solar generation globally in 2025, adding 53 TWh, a 37% increase from the previous year. This was driven by record capacity additions of 38 GW(AC) in 2025, a 54% increase on 2024 deployment, with policy support for both utility-scale and rooftop-PV solar. 

Pakistan added a record 17 TWh of solar generation in 2025, roughly the same as Brazil. This was an 85% increase from 2024, which was already 75% higher than in 2023. Rapid expansion of solar installations in Pakistan has almost tripled solar’s share in just three years – rising from 6.6% in 2022 to 18.8% in 2025. Pakistan is one of the world’s fastest-growing solar markets, with strong growth in distributed solar, including through off-grid systems.

Solar generation was the fastest-growing power source for at least 23 countries in 2025.

China remains the global leader in solar generation. China’s total solar generation in 2025 (1,175 TWh) was greater than that of the OECD combined (1,078 TWh) and three times that of the next largest country, the United States (389 TWh).

Hungary and Chile now generate more than a quarter of their electricity from solar; in 2020, both countries had solar shares below 10%. Hungary continues to be a global solar leader, increasing its share from 24% in 2024 to 27% in 2025, due in part to government support and subsidies. Chile saw an increase from 23% to 25% over the same period and now ranks second globally.

To rank among the top ten countries by solar share, a country needed to reach 17% in 2025, compared with just 13.5% in 2024.

Based on the latest available data, 50 countries generated more than a tenth of their electricity from solar in 2025, up from 15 in 2020. No country had yet passed that threshold in 2015. Among larger electricity markets, defined as those with more than 5 TWh of total solar generation, 19 countries exceeded a 10% solar share in 2025, up from 15 in 2024 and none in 2020.

In per capita terms, global solar generation reached 338 kWh in 2025, a 29% increase from 2024. Australia remains the world leader for solar generation on a per capita basis, driven by high residential uptake. 43% of Australian households now have their own solar panels installed.

Global wind generation reached a new high of 2,715 TWh in 2025, up 205 TWh (+8.2%) from 2024. The increase was the second-largest of any source of electricity in 2025, behind only solar. Wind generation has roughly doubled in the past seven years, up from 1,268 TWh in 2018.

Global wind capacity additions reached a record 167 GW in 2025. However, this growth remained concentrated in the top four markets: China, India, the United States and Germany. Together, these markets accounted for 82% of global wind installations in 2025.

The share of wind power in the global electricity mix continued to rise in 2025, reaching an all-time high of 8.5%.

China accounted for just over two-thirds (68%) of the global increase in wind generation in 2025. Its wind generation grew by 138 TWh in 2025, a 14% increase from 2024. The country also accounted for more than half of global wind capacity additions for the third year in a row, adding 119 GW in 2025, 72% of the global total.

India registered the second-highest increase in wind generation in 2025 (+22 TWh). This was the country’s largest single-year increase to date. Wind now accounts for 5% of India’s electricity generation, double the share reached in 2015.

In the United States, growth in wind generation slowed to 12.5 TWh in 2025, 59% lower than the increase in 2024 (+31 TWh). This was partially the result of a slowdown in wind deployment. The United States’ annual wind installations in 2024 (+5.1 GW) and 2025 (+5.6 GW) dropped to the lowest levels in a decade.

Brazil recorded the fourth-largest increase in wind generation, with output rising by 9.1 TWh in 2025. This raised wind’s generation share by one percentage point to 16%.

Australia recorded a significant increase in wind generation in 2025 of 6.5 TWh (+20%) due to stronger wind conditions and major new wind farms coming online, such as the 412 MW Goyder South wind farm and the 923 MW MacIntyre Wind Farm, Australia’s largest-ever wind farm project. In 2024, temporary wind conditions in Australia’s late autumn and winter reduced the output of wind farms. However, conditions improved in 2025.

By contrast, wind generation fell in the EU in 2025 (-12 TWh) owing to unusually low wind speeds in some major markets, particularly in the first half of 2025. Weaker wind conditions led to Germany’s wind generation falling (-5.6 TWh), as well as Spain’s (-3.4 TWh). Sweden, Poland and Denmark also recorded declines above 1 TWh in 2025. However, wind still accounted for 17% of the EU’s electricity mix in 2025, double the global average.

China remained the largest wind power producer in 2025, generating 1,135 TWh – more than the G7 combined (819 TWh). China accounted for 42% of global wind generation in 2025.

India overtook the UK to become the fifth-largest wind generator globally in 2025, reaching a total of 104 TWh. It is the second-largest generator of wind power in Asia, behind China.

Among countries with at least 5 TWh of wind generation, the top ten by wind share in 2025 were all in Europe. By this metric, Denmark leads the world by far, with wind generating 58% of the country’s electricity.

The latest available data shows 15 countries generated more than a fifth of their electricity from wind in 2025, up from nine countries in 2020.

On a per capita basis, Nordic countries generated the most wind power in 2025, led by Finland at 4,015 kWh per capita.

Global gas generation rose by 0.5% in 2025, increasing by just 36 TWh, the lowest increase since 2020, and only a fifth of the 183 TWh (+2.7%) increase in 2024. Solar growth was 18 times greater than gas generation growth in 2025. 

Despite modest growth, global gas generation reached a record high of 6,919 TWh in 2025, 8% higher than pre-pandemic levels recorded in 2019. However, in recent years, gas generation has grown more slowly than electricity demand. As a result, the share of gas in the global electricity mix has declined every year since a peak of 23.9% in 2020 – falling to 21.8% in 2025.

Four countries have shifted a fifth — or more — of their generation away from gas since 2019 due to renewables growth and new nuclear power plants. Belarus saw the share of gas fall from 97% in 2019 to 55% in 2025, as a nuclear power plant came online. In the United Arab Emirates, gas fell from 97% in 2019 to 68% in 2024 (2025 data not yet available) as nuclear and solar power expanded rapidly. In Latvia, gas declined from 50% in 2019 to 26% in 2025 due to renewables growth, while in the Netherlands it fell from 59% to 35% as a result of growing solar and wind generation.

The largest increase in gas generation occurred in Taiwan (China), where output rose by 16 TWh (+13%), compensating for the shutdown of its last operating nuclear reactor in the first half of 2025. Türkiye recorded the second-largest gas power rise of 15 TWh (+24%) in 2025. This was partly compensating for a decline in hydropower output as Türkiye experienced its lowest rainfall level in 61 years.

The largest gas power decline in 2025 was in the United States (−63 TWh, −3.4%), as higher gas prices reversed the coal-to-gas-switching seen in the previous three years.

Thailand recorded the second-largest decline in gas generation (-13 TWh, -9.6%) after three consecutive years of increases. Thailand experienced mild weather in 2025, leading to less cooling-related demand, alongside a slowing economy and rising solar generation.

Russia also recorded a decline in gas generation in 2025, falling by 13 TWh (-2.3%), the first decline since 2020. This was driven by lower electricity demand in 2025 due to a milder winter than in 2024 and signs of an economic slowdown.

Japan’s gas generation fell by 8.5 TWh (-2.4%), marking the eighth consecutive year of gas power declines. Japan’s decarbonisation strategy has supported this consistent reduction in gas use, along with the gradual reactivation of nuclear power and continued growth in solar generation.

Despite its gas-to-coal switching in 2025, the United States remained by far the largest generator of gas-fired electricity, producing 1,807 TWh, more than a quarter of global gas generation.

Six of the ten countries most reliant on gas for electricity generation in 2025 were in the Middle East and North Africa.

Middle Eastern countries recorded the highest per capita gas generation rates in 2025, led by Bahrain at 28 times the global average.

Based on the latest available data, 13 countries generated more than 80% of their electricity from gas power in 2025.

Global nuclear generation rose by 1.3% (+35 TWh) in 2025, to an all-time high of 2,812 TWh. The growth rate in 2025 was lower than in the previous two years, but similar to the 1.0% average annual growth rate of the past decade (2015-2024). 

Although nuclear generation reached a new high in 2025, it was only 3% higher than in 2010 prior to Japan’s Fukushima disaster. Nuclear’s share in the global electricity mix dipped to 8.9% in 2025, its lowest level since the early 1980s.

However, the global pipeline for nuclear power is expanding, with 70 reactors under construction in 15 countries, almost all of which are in Asia. Most of the construction currently underway in China, Russia and South Korea is for large reactors.

China recorded the largest increase in nuclear generation in 2025, with output rising by 37 TWh as new reactors came online.

Nuclear generation in France rose by 11.6 TWh, returning to near-2019 levels after persistent outages had reduced output in recent years.

Japan’s nuclear generation increased by 9.2 TWh in 2025 following a restart of two reactors in 2024. In 2025, the country’s nuclear restart programme progressed more slowly than expected with no additional units coming back online, though more are expected in 2026. Since 2011, Japan has restarted 14 of the country’s 33 potentially operable reactors.

Nuclear generation in Taiwan (China) fell by 8.9 TWh in 2025. This marked a sixth consecutive year of nuclear power declines. Its last operating reactor was shut down in May, completing a planned phase-out of nuclear power. Belgium saw the second-largest nuclear power decline in 2025, with generation falling by 7 TWh due to reactor closures.

The United States remained the largest nuclear power generator globally in 2025, producing 785 TWh – a modest increase (+0.4%) from 782 TWh in 2024. 

China generated 488 TWh of nuclear power in 2025, the second-largest globally. The country remains one of the few countries with new reactors under construction. Nuclear accounts for 4.6% of China’s electricity generation, relatively unchanged since 2019 despite growing output, as China’s total electricity generation is also growing rapidly.

Japan moved from seventh to sixth-largest nuclear generator in 2025 compared with 2024. Japan was the third-largest nuclear generator globally in 2010, before the Fukushima nuclear disaster.

Eight of the ten countries with the highest share of nuclear power in their electricity mix in 2025 were in the EU. Nuclear remained the largest single source of electricity in the EU in 2025, accounting for 23% of total electricity generation. France generated 69% of its electricity with nuclear power in 2025, the highest share of any country, and also recorded the highest per capita generation in 2025 (5,882 kWh).

Global hydropower generation was essentially unchanged in 2025, with a very small increase of 3 TWh (+0.1%) from 2024, which pushed it to a record global output of 4,437 TWh. However, hydro generation growth did not keep pace with rising electricity demand in 2025, resulting in its share of global electricity generation falling to an all-time low of 14%.

Since 2010, global hydropower capacity has grown by 43% while generation has risen by only 29%. This points to a decline in average capacity factors, evident in some major markets including Brazil, China and the US, although the underlying patterns differ. In Brazil, the hydro capacity factor fell from over 55% in the early 2010s to around 40% in 2025. In China, capacity factors were mostly stable at around 40% in the 2010s, but declined in recent years. In 2023, they dropped to 34% before recovering slightly to 36% in 2025. In the United States, hydro capacity factors have trended downward from an average of 35% in the 2010s to 31% in the period 2021-2025.

China recorded the largest increase in hydro generation in 2025, adding 45 TWh. After a particularly poor year in 2023, the country’s hydro conditions continued to improve through 2024 and into 2025 with rainfall totals substantially above average.

India recorded the second-largest increase in hydropower generation in 2025, adding 21 TWh as a result of high monsoon rainfall and increased capacity. 4 GW of new hydro capacity came online in 2025, while average rainfall was higher than in 2024.

Ethiopia recorded the largest increase in hydro generation (+8 TWh) in Africa in 2025, following the full commissioning of the 5.15 GW Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, now the largest hydroelectric power plant on the continent. This helped nearly double Ethiopia’s hydro output from 17 TWh in 2023 to 32 TWh in 2025. Ethiopia alone accounted for 60% of Africa’s new hydro generation in 2025.

In Brazil, droughts and operational factors pushed hydro output down by 25 TWh in 2025, marking the third consecutive year of declining generation. The decline was almost twice that of 2024, when output fell by 13 TWh. 

Türkiye, hit by severe drought, recorded the second-largest hydro generation decline in 2025, with output decreasing by 17 TWh. Among EU countries, the largest hydro generation declines were in France (-11.7 TWh) and Italy (-11.4 TWh). Overall, hydropower in the EU fell by 43 TWh, retreating from the excellent hydrological conditions in 2024 due to regional water scarcity in southern basins in 2025, including the Alpine regions of Italy and France.

China remained the world’s largest hydropower generator in 2025, producing 1,399 TWh, despite hydro providing just 13% of China’s electricity, far less than its share of electricity generation in Brazil (52%) and Canada (53%), the second- and third-largest hydro generators. 

Bhutan had the highest hydro share among countries with at least 5 TWh of hydro generation in 2025, with hydro supplying all of the country’s electricity, followed by Nepal (99%) and Paraguay (99%). 

On a per capita basis, Iceland and Norway ranked as the highest and second-highest hydro generators in 2025 at 34,215 kWh and 25,746 kWh per person, respectively

Global coal generation fell by 0.6% (-63 TWh) in 2025. For the first time on record, renewable generation (10,730 TWh) exceeded coal generation (10,476 TWh). However, coal remained the single largest source of electricity globally.

While total electricity generation from coal has grown over the last decade (+13% since 2015), it has not kept pace with growth in overall demand (+32%) over the same period, so its share in the global electricity mix has declined. Coal accounted for 39% of global electricity generation in 2015 but only 33.0% in 2025, dropping below a third for the first year on record.

Coal’s diminishing role is most evident in countries outside Asia that have implemented key structural reforms to reduce or eliminate coal use, including setting ambitious targets and introducing carbon pricing. In the United Kingdom, coal reached its highest share this century in 2012 (39%). Since then, growing renewable generation, particularly from wind, has led to a rapid decline in the country’s coal use. In 2025, the United Kingdom’s electricity system was fully coal-free. Similarly, Greece’s share of coal collapsed from 43% in 2015 to 5% in 2025. In Chile, it has declined from 37% to 18% over the same period, driven by rising renewable output.

The largest declines in coal generation in 2025 occurred in China and India, where generation fell by 71 TWh (-1.2%) and 44 TWh (-2.9%) respectively. India’s coal generation fell in 2025 as a result of the significant rise in solar and wind, helped by cooler temperatures that reduced demand growth compared with 2024. In China, clean electricity growth outpaced demand growth, driving down coal generation.

The largest increase in coal generation in 2025 occurred in the United States, with a rise of 85 TWh (+13%). There was a reduction in gas-fired electricity generation in favour of coal, as US natural gas spot prices rose by 56% in 2025, up from 2024’s record low, due to a cold winter, below-average storage levels and rising export demand. This marked only the second annual increase in US coal power in the last decade and went against the prevailing longer-term trend in which gas and renewables have displaced the country’s coal generation.

China and India remained the two largest coal generators globally in 2025, despite declines in both countries. Together, they accounted for 69% of global coal generation. 

Mongolia (86%), South Africa (81%) and India (71%) remained the top three countries by coal’s share of total electricity generation. However, Mongolia’s total generation is far smaller than that of South Africa and India. Based on the latest available data, 14 countries generated more than half of their electricity from coal in 2025. 

Australia still had the highest per capita coal generation (4,534 kWh), despite substantial declines over the last two decades.