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Ember data cited by the BBC shows solar electricity generation narrowly exceeded nuclear generation in 2025. Solar is expected to produce a larger share in 2026, when it is projected to supply about 10% of global power; grid capacity and storage remain constraints on further growth.
Solar electricity generation narrowly surpassed nuclear power globally in 2025, according to Ember data cited by the BBC, and is expected to pull further ahead in 2026. The shift reflects solar’s rapid expansion into a major source of electricity, although the forecast that it will supply about 10% of global power this year remains a projection rather than a final annual result.
Ember’s figures show solar generation just edging past nuclear in 2025. The BBC report says solar is expected to exceed nuclear by a wider margin in 2026, as its share of global power approaches 10%. A decade ago, solar supplied about 1% of the world’s power, according to the report. The comparison is about electricity generation, not total energy use across transport, heating and industry.
Solar’s growth has been driven by falling panel prices, large-scale installations and rooftop systems. The BBC report says a steep price decline in 2023 and 2024 helped make panels much cheaper. Solar met three-quarters of global electricity-demand growth in 2025, the report states, while wind generation also grew, at a slower pace. China remains by far the largest solar power producer, though installations and household uptake have expanded elsewhere, including through portable solar panel kits.
Battery costs have also fallen, allowing some solar power generated during the day to be stored and used later. Oxford energy and climate policy professor Jan Rosenow told the BBC that batteries have addressed much of the daily challenge of shifting midday generation into evening hours. But the report says storage over longer periods, including cloudy spells and seasonal changes, remains harder. It identifies power grids, storage and the pace of electrification as constraints on continued expansion, shaping what solar generators can power in real life.
Solar’s Lead Tests Power Systems
The change marks a shift in the mix of global electricity generation: a technology that provided a small fraction of power a decade ago has grown enough to edge past nuclear in annual output. It does not mean solar has replaced nuclear, or that it supplies most electricity. The projected 10% share in 2026 would still leave most global generation coming from other sources.
For electricity users and governments, the next challenge is making power systems accommodate more variable generation. Solar output rises during daylight and falls after sunset, while demand does not necessarily follow the same pattern. Batteries can move some electricity between hours, but longer-duration storage, transmission links and grid upgrades are also needed to manage variations in output and demand. The pace and cost of those investments will shape how much of solar’s growth translates into dependable supply.
The shift also has implications for energy security. In countries where households can install rooftop systems, solar can reduce reliance on central utilities and fuel imports. The BBC report describes Pakistan’s expansion as largely driven by household purchases, while Australia has more than four million homes with rooftop solar, well over a third of households. Those examples show how adoption can spread beyond national power projects, though they do not establish that every household or electricity system can rely on solar in the same way.
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From One Percent to a Global Mainstay
The comparison rests on a decade of rapid growth. Solar supplied around 1% of global power about ten years ago, according to the BBC report, and is now the fastest-growing source of new electricity. Ember’s 2025 figures put solar just ahead of nuclear generation for that year. Nuclear, by contrast, has been a significant source of electricity since the late 1970s, giving the comparison a long-established reference point.
China’s large solar buildout has been central to the global increase, but the report says growth is not confined to China. In the United States, energy analyst Alicia Zhao of the University of Maryland told the BBC that policy constraints may slow renewable expansion relative to what might otherwise occur. She also said solar remains among the cheapest sources of new power in the country and is being built across political lines. The report notes that renewables account for more than 90% of new US capacity, a figure Zhao cited.
Solar is also being installed alongside other uses of land. The BBC describes agrivoltaics, which combines panels with food production, including sheep grazing at a Kentucky solar site. Such approaches are being promoted in response to land-use concerns, but the report does not establish how widely they can be applied or how much they will contribute to overall generation.
““[Solar] generating more electricity than all the world’s nuclear power plants is a pretty insane stat, for sure.””
— Dave Jones, co-founder of Ember
The 2026 Generation Gap Is Still Projected
The 2026 estimate is not a finalized annual result. The BBC report says solar will “almost certainly” reach about 10% of global power and exceed nuclear by more than it did in 2025, but the year’s full generation data is not yet available. The size of the projected gap is not specified in the source material.
The exact effects of policy, grid investment and battery deployment on future growth also remain uncertain. The report describes long-duration storage across seasons and extended periods of poor sunlight as unresolved challenges. It does not provide a global estimate of how much additional storage or transmission capacity will be needed, or a timetable for those upgrades. Solar’s lead in annual generation also does not indicate how reliably it can meet demand at every hour or in every region.
Final 2026 Data Will Test the Forecast
The next clear milestone is the release of complete 2026 electricity-generation data, which will show whether solar reaches the reported projection of roughly 10% of global power and how far its output stands above nuclear. Until those figures are available, the 2025 crossing is the reported result and the 2026 increase remains a forecast.
Separately, the pace of grid upgrades, battery installation and electrification will help determine whether power systems can absorb more solar generation. The source report does not give dates for specific global milestones in those areas. It points instead to an ongoing test: whether institutions and infrastructure can expand quickly enough to match the growth of solar installations and electricity demand.
Key Questions
Has solar already overtaken nuclear power?
Ember data cited by the BBC shows solar narrowly surpassed nuclear in global electricity generation in 2025. The report says solar is expected to move further ahead in 2026, but full-year data for 2026 is not yet available.
Does solar now provide most of the world’s electricity?
No. Solar’s projected share is about 10% of global power in 2026. Overtaking nuclear in annual generation does not mean solar supplies most electricity; other sources continue to make up the larger share.
Why has solar generation grown so quickly?
The BBC report points to lower panel prices, rapid deployment in China and other countries, household rooftop installations and cheaper batteries. It says solar met three-quarters of global electricity-demand growth in 2025.
What limits further solar expansion?
The report identifies grid capacity and storage as major constraints. Batteries can shift some daytime electricity into the evening, but storing power through longer cloudy periods or across seasons remains more difficult.
Source: bbc.com
