China added about 275 GW of solar PV capacity in January–November 2025, exceeding installations in the same period of 2024
An FIT-driven rush boosted additions in May, while the shift to CfD auctions slowed deployments mid-year
Annual additions are likely to peak in 2025 and moderate in 2026, even as the country’s cumulative installations continue to rise
With nearly 275 GW of new solar PV capacity added between January and November 2025, China is on course to surpass its total installations from the previous year, which exceeded 277 GW (see China Exited 2024 With Over 277 GW New Installed Solar PV Capacity).
According to the latest installation statistics released by China’s National Energy Administration (NEA), which reports in AC terms, the country had installed 274.89 GW PV within 11M 2025, representing 68.59 GW more than 206.30 GW it deployed in 11M 2024 (see China Installed 25 GW New Solar PV Capacity In November 2024).
The increase in installations on a year-on-year (YoY) basis is, of course, thanks to over 92 GW installed within May 2025, owing to the rush to claim feed-in-tariff (FIT) incentives. From June 2025, the market shifted to a contracts for difference (CfD) auction mechanism, which impacted the pace of monthly additions as the numbers declined to 14.36 GW in June, 11.04 GW in July, and dropped to a historical low of 7.36 GW in August 2025.
From September onward, monthly deployments picked up pace, reaching 9.66 GW, followed by 12.6 GW in October (see China Exceeds 252 GW AC Solar PV Capacity In 10M 2025).
NEA reports 22.02 GW capacity additions in the month of November 2025, the highest capacity installed in the last 6 months during the year, accounting for 12% YoY decline, but over 74% improvement on a month-on-month (MoM) basis. It remains to be seen if December 2025 installations will match the 70.87 GW installations of 2024.
At the end of November 2025, China’s cumulative installed solar PV capacity expanded to 1.16 GW, accounting for an annual increase of 41.9%.
China is likely to exit 2025 with a record-high PV capacity of about 287 GW before annual additions decline to around 218 GW in 2026, according to S&P Global Energy, which is a drop from 270 GW to 300 GW that the China Photovoltaic Industry Association (CPIA) expects for the year. Annual additions will still be under 380 GW forecast by the State Grid Energy Research Institute for the year.
Nevertheless, policy changes in China and the US are likely to bring down global solar installations for 2025 (see Global Solar PV Installations Set For 1st Annual Decline In 2026).
