Solar power capacity jumps 50% in past year

At the launch of Solar Ireland's Scale of Solar Report 2026 at Government Buildings were Solar Ireland director of communications and strategy Priscila McGeehan; Solar Ireland CEO Ronan Power, and climate, energy, and environment minister Darragh O'Brien. Picture: Shane O'Neill/Coalesce

Ireland's solar power capacity has jumped almost 300% in three years, according to a report published on Thursday by industry body Solar Ireland.

The report shows total connected solar capacity reaching 2.7GW by the end of May 2026, representing 297% growth since 2023 and more than 50% growth in approximately 12 months. 

Solar Ireland's annual Scale of Solar 2026 report said Ireland now has 2.7GW total connected solar capacity, with 1.59GW is for utility-scale solar. Meath is the leading producer of utility scale solar, hosting seven solar farms larger than 10MW, with 441GWh generated in 12 months to the end of May. Cork generated 110GWh in the period. 

There are now 190,000 rooftop solar systems operating in Ireland, avoiding over 155,000 tonnes of CO2 over the past year.  Solar generated more than 1.17TWh (terawatt hours) of electricity across Ireland in the year to end of May. 

Based on current deployment trends, total connected solar capacity is estimated to exceed 3.3GW by year end, said the report. 

"In the past year alone, Ireland added almost 1GW of solar capacity, while solar generation and deployment records have continued to be broken across the country. Solar is now making a meaningful contribution to homes, farms, schools, businesses and communities nationwide," said Solar Ireland chief executive Ronan Power. "Maintaining this momentum will require continued collaboration across industry, Government, regulators and system operators.

"Grid infrastructure, planning processes, workforce capacity, market design, and public participation will all play a critical role in determining how quickly Ireland can continue scaling solar generation."

The Scale of Solar report was launched by climate, energy, and environment minister Darragh O'Brien. "The growth of solar energy in Ireland is one of the clearest examples of how our energy transition is moving from ambition to delivery," said Mr O'Brien.

ESB Networks managing director Nicholas Tarrant said around 50,000 new solar installations are completed across homes, farms, businesses, and communities every year.