Chinese solar panels fall to 12 cents per watt
The cost of photovoltaic panels made in China fell to 12 US cents per watt in 2026, contributing to the spread of rooftop solar systems in countries across Asia, Africa, Australia and Europe. In the early 2000s, panels cost between $5 and $6 per watt, OilPrice reports, citing the Financial Times.
Solar installations for businesses and households
Pakistani company Bestway Cement Limited is installing ground-mounted solar power plants at five production sites to reduce its dependence on the country's unstable power grid. A 26 MW photovoltaic capacity has been installed at its plant in Chakwal, covering more than a quarter of the facility's electricity needs. According to the publication, the use of solar generation has allowed the company to cut electricity costs by up to 40%.
Plant general manager Abdul Waheed said that switching to solar energy is necessary to compete with other manufacturers. The Chakwal facility produces more than 3 million tonnes of cement per year.
Market growth in Asia and Africa
Think tank Ember estimates that rooftop solar capacity in the Philippines nearly doubled in the 12 months through April. According to its calculations, residential solar systems in the country can pay for themselves in just over three years. Power distribution company Meralco said that rooftop installations in the Philippines generated 372 GWh of electricity in the first half of 2026.
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Ember also forecasts that a record 17 GW of solar capacity will be installed in Africa in 2026, 45% more than a year earlier. About three-quarters of this increase, the organization estimates, will come from small distributed systems on the roofs of commercial and industrial buildings.
In India, a government rooftop solar program launched in February 2024 has reached more than 5.5 million households and adds approximately 500,000 new ones each month. The program provides direct subsidies, concessional loans and a mechanism for selling surplus generated electricity to the grid.
Australia and European systems
In Australia, solar panels have been installed on more than 4.3 million homes and small businesses, representing 43% of the total number of such properties. The country's total rooftop system capacity has reached 28.3 GW, while coal-fired generation capacity is approximately 22.5 GW. In the United Kingdom, plug-in solar systems with a capacity of up to 800 W, which can be connected to a standard household socket, were legalized in August 2026.
