Electricity from solar cells is a growth industry. The rated output of newly installed photovoltaics in Germany has been over five gigawatts in each of the last two years.
Around 2.2 million photovoltaic systems were installed on the roofs and properties of the Federal Republic in March 2022. At 58.4 gigawatts, the nominal output of these solar cells, which are operated by companies and above all by private households, is around ten percent more than in the same month last year.
Expansion of the photovoltaic network is picking up speed
As the Statista graphic based on data from the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems shows, the expansion of the photovoltaic network in Germany is picking up speed again. After the newly installed capacity had fallen rapidly in the early 2010s, the gigawatt figures have been on the rise again since 2017. In 2021, new solar systems contributed around 5.5 gigawatts to the power supply.
The share of photovoltaics in total electricity generation has also increased: in the first quarter of 2022, photovoltaics accounted for 6.3 percent of total electricity generation in Germany. In the same quarter of the previous year, solar power still had a share of 4.7 percent, reports the Federal Statistical Office.
