5.2m Solar Kits Sold Globally In 2nd Half Of 2022: ISA Tells SAFDE

The International Solar Alliance (ISA) said that 5.2 million solar kits were sold globally during the first half of 2022, hinting at the industry’s growth worldwide. Ajay Mathur, Director General (DG) of the ISA, furnished the information at the South Asia Forum for Distributed Energy (SAFDE) event held in New Delhi. 

“In the past year, we have seen tremendous uptake of solar rooftops. Data reveals that 5.2 million solar energy kits were sold globally in the second half of 2022, a 20% increase from the first half of the year and 18% higher than the previous peak in the second half of 2019. It clearly shows that we have learned to value them as we go. We have also learned to value the off-grid utilization architecture in parallel,” he said.

The SAFDE event was organized by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) and GOGLA. The officials of the MNRE and several other industry representatives from the renewable sector attended the event. 

Bhagwant Khuba, Minister of State for New and Renewable Energy opened the SAFDE Forum yesterday at the India Habitat Center in New Delhi, alongside Ajay Mathur, General Director of International Solar Alliance; Bishal Thapa, Senior Director of CLASP; and Koen Peters, Executive Director of GOGLA, welcoming over 200 international and local key stakeholders, industry experts, and government representatives for impactful discussions on decentralized solar solutions for improved energy access, resilience, and sustainable growth. 

Khuba expressed confidence that the event would pave the way for two days of meaningful discussions around the importance of harnessing DRE to tackle challenges faced by India and the world.

In addition to enlightening discussions, the SAFDE event also features multiple end-users of distributed renewable energy solutions from across India. They will be presenting impact testimonials of how these technologies have positively contributed to their lives and livelihoods. Furthermore, an engaging expo as a part of the event showcases innovative products and services by local and international firms, providing insights into the latest advancements and trends in the DRE sector.

“At SAFDE, we bring the key Indian and South Asian players in the distributed energy space together to talk about how we can improve energy access, support livelihoods, and deliver green growth even more than we do already. Since this is a very dynamic environment, we must meet, learn from each other, and strike new partnerships,” said Koen Peters, Executive Director at GOGLA.

For India and South Asia, where energy access is no longer an acute issue, DRE solutions are today playing a key role in providing backup power in weak grid areas, especially in powering agriculture, enterprise, and health. Decentralized solar technologies help communities adapt and build resilience to climate change, with droughts, floods, and heat waves affecting millions annually.

According to GOGLA’s Global Off-Grid Solar Market report, today, 104 million people globally have benefited from improved access to energy through off-grid solar energy, and close to 15 million are benefiting from improved access to appliances. The report also notes that 98 million metric tons of CO2e have been avoided in the past decade by selling off-grid solar solutions, the equivalent of taking 26 coal-fired power plants offline for a year.