The growth of solar energy has seen a remarkable and unprecedented transformation over the past decade. Solar energy’s share of global electricity production skyrocketed from a mere 0.15% in 2010 to an impressive 4.52% in 2022. This astonishing surge in solar power adoption has defied even the most optimistic predictions, leaving both skeptics and advocates astounded. Just a decade ago, a Harvard Business School paper deemed solar energy as “the most expensive renewable energy”. Fast forward to the present, and we find ourselves entering the “terawatt age” of solar power, where the sun is considered the most cost-effective means of generating electricity. It’s an opportune time to explore how we arrived here and why previous forecasts, whether for or against solar, missed the mark.

The growth of solar energy has seen a remarkable and unprecedented transformation over the past decade. Solar energy’s share of global electricity production skyrocketed from a mere 0.15% in 2010 to an impressive 4.52% in 2022. This astonishing surge in solar power adoption has defied even the most optimistic predictions, leaving both skeptics and advocates astounded. Just a decade ago, a Harvard Business School paper deemed solar energy as “the most expensive renewable energy”. Fast forward to the present, and we find ourselves entering the “terawatt age” of solar power, where the sun is considered the most cost-effective means of generating electricity. It’s an opportune time to explore how we arrived here and why previous forecasts, whether for or against solar, missed the mark.