In just five years, the amount of solar electricity generated in South Africa has increased from 4.9 TWh in 2019 to 19.9 TWh in 2024, according to data from Ember, a global energy think tank.

There’s been a massive increase in solar panel imports to South Africa. In 2023 alone, 4.3GW of solar panels were imported from China, another 3.8GW were imported in 2024.

This is more likely a response to the erratic electricity supply than a burning desire to reduce the country’s carbon emissions, but either way it’s a win for the climate.

Other African countries are also importing solar panels from China to the tune of 12.9GW in 2024. South Africa is far and away the biggest importer, but Nigeria, Morocco and Egypt each imported at least 1GW of solar panel capacity in 2024.