Solar Panel Imports from China Surge in African Countries: A Renewable Energy Shift

From Algeria along the Mediterranean coast to landlocked Zambia in the south, African countries have witnessed a significant upsurge in the import of solar panels from China this year compared to previous years. Analysts suggest that this could mark the onset of a substantial endeavor to meet the continent's power demands through renewable energy, as opposed to fossil fuels.

Record Imports in May 2025

In May 2025, African countries collectively imported 1.57 Gigawatts of solar panels from China, reaching an all - time high. (To put this in perspective, it is equivalent to adding three - fourths of the capacity of the Hoover Dam within a single month.) Dave Jones, the chief analyst at the global energy think tank Ember, notes that this spike was not driven by relatively affluent African countries such as South Africa. Instead, it originated from nearly two dozen smaller nations.

Jones monitors the value of Chinese solar panels exported to various countries using Chinese customs data. In the first five months of 2025, he discovered that at least 22 African countries had imported more solar panels than during the same period in the previous year, with most doubling their import volumes. Algeria stands out as a particularly striking example, having imported 0.76 GW of solar panels in the first half of 2025, representing a 6,300 percent increase from the previous year.

Less developed countries like Chad have imported sufficient solar panels to replace their entire current power generation capacity. “The scale of these figures is remarkable, considering the current electricity grid demand,” Jones told WIRED.

China's Dominance in Solar Panel Manufacturing

Over the past decade, China has established its dominance in global solar panel manufacturing. According to the International Energy Agency, more than 80 percent of the world's panels are produced in China. This achievement can be attributed to government subsidies, economies of scale, and technological advancements by local companies. However, until recently, the majority of these panels were exported to Europe, North America, and other Asian countries.

Although overall sales to African countries remain relatively small compared to these traditional export markets, the Global South appears to be at a pivotal moment in its approach to energy. For decades, energy - starved countries predominantly had one default option when seeking to expand their power supply: importing coal and gas. Now, for the first time, solar energy is emerging as a more cost - effective and environmentally friendly alternative, eliminating the need to sacrifice the environment for development.

A Familiar Narrative

The situation currently unfolding in Africa may seem familiar, especially to those with knowledge of the global green energy industry. Similar scenarios have occurred before, most notably in Pakistan last year.

In 2024, Pakistan installed approximately 15 Gigawatts of solar panels; for context, the country's total peak electricity demand is around 30 Gigawatts. So many households installed solar panels on their rooftops that Pakistani cities now exhibit a visible change on satellite maps. This trend poses a threat to the future of Pakistan's national grid as people increasingly generate their own power, reducing their reliance on grid - supplied electricity. And this was largely due to the country's mass importation of solar panels from its neighbor and ally, China.

A comparable trend was observed in South Africa in 2023. The utility infrastructure in both countries was insufficiently resilient to meet peak demand, leading to frequent blackouts that compelled consumers to seek alternative energy sources. The government introduced policies to make solar energy more appealing, such as tax breaks for panel purchases or payments for transmitting excess energy to the grid.

Across the board, the primary driver of solar energy's popularity is straightforward: the cost of purchasing and installing Chinese panels has decreased significantly, reaching an inflection point globally. Anika Patel, a China analyst at Carbon Brief, a climate policy publication, states that even if a country is not overly concerned about climate change, generating energy from solar is economically viable.

“A great number of African nations currently require more electricity. The fact that solar plants can be installed at a fraction of the cost of building a new coal or gas plant is highly attractive,” she said.

Price is a particularly crucial factor for African countries. Léo Echard, a policy officer at the Global Solar Council and the author of a report on Africa's solar market, notes that it is more challenging for African countries to secure loans for solar power plant projects compared to developed countries. Given the significant price advantages of Chinese solar companies over manufacturers in other countries, they are the preferred choice for meeting Africa's solar demand.

From Large - Scale Plants to Rooftops

Echard points out that two types of demand are fueling the solar boom in African countries. In North Africa, countries like Algeria and Egypt are constructing large - scale utility - scale solar power plants that necessitate a substantial number of panels. In Sub - Saharan Africa, however, the panels are being imported by more rural communities in areas that have traditionally been unconnected to the grid.

Similar to Pakistan, this network of distributed rooftop solar panels is transforming the energy landscape. People are gaining access to energy, and this access is not reliant on government spending or foreign loans. Instead, it spreads organically, household by household, as long as the panels remain affordable.

Yike Fu, the climate program manager at Development Reimagined, a consultancy specializing in tracking Africa - China climate collaborations, has witnessed this off - grid adoption firsthand. During her visit to Kenya's Maasai Mara National Reserve in 2023, she was astonished to see a Chinese - made solar panel in a village whose primary economic activity was charging tourists an entrance fee to pass through.

The village leader had a single solar panel, smaller than a TV, donated by a Shanghai - based company. Apart from this, the community had no grid connection. “The local community clearly desires access to electricity, but sometimes it is extremely difficult or costly to connect to the national grid, so solar provides a solution,” she said.

Fu manages Development Reimagined's China Africa Climate Action Tracker, which compiles data on Chinese investment in African renewable energy projects. However, she notes that due to the rapid pace of change on the ground, her team sometimes misses developments. When her colleagues visited Zambia and Botswana, they found that many Chinese companies had already established local business operations and were making profits, yet this information is often overlooked outside the region.

Looming Risks

The global response to Chinese - made, low - cost solar panels has been dichotomous. Some countries, led by the United States, are implementing tariffs to curb the influx of Chinese panels and promote domestic production. Others, like Pakistan, are embracing them wholeheartedly.

For now, African countries mostly fall into the second category. For governments grappling with daily energy shortages, the decision is straightforward: affordable energy is desirable.

Some nations, however, are considering policies to foster local assembly or small - scale manufacturing of solar panels, with the aim of ensuring that their local manufacturing industries also benefit from the green energy transition. (For example, Nigeria proposed, and then quickly reversed, a plan to ban solar panel imports.)

The issue is that there is scarcely any local solar manufacturing industry in Africa, according to Elena Kiryakova, a research fellow at the ODI Global think tank who studies China's climate investment in Africa. What does exist is mainly the assembly of individual solar cells into panels, the final step in the solar supply chain, which also adds the least value.

“Based on some of the conversations we had in Kenya, I believe the current view is that it is more advantageous to rely on cheap imports rather than potentially delay meaningful action by attempting to develop local industries,” Kiryakova said. “This is undoubtedly an ongoing debate. But in practice, this reliance on Chinese solar panel imports is likely to persist.”

This is an edition of Zeyi Yang and Louise Matsakis’ Made in China newsletter. Read previous newsletters here.