Germany's solar power output has already beaten last year's entire total — with more than three months of 2026 still to go. According to Energy-Charts data from the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE, cited by the German Solar Industry Association (BSW-Solar), 90.2 terawatt-hours of solar power had been generated by September 27, more than the 90 TWh produced in the whole of 2025. The association declared September 27 "Solar Day".
Two factors drove the record, according to BSW-Solar: unusually many sunshine hours and the continued build-out of photovoltaics. New installations are appearing on residential and commercial rooftops as well as on open land, while battery storage is gaining importance by shifting solar generation into the evening.
"Solar energy has long ceased to be a niche technology. It is citizens' energy, corporate energy and a supporting pillar of our power supply," said BSW-Solar managing director Carsten Körnig.
The association also used the milestone to issue a warning. "The solar record is reason to celebrate, but no reason to lean back," Körnig said. "Precisely now we must not put the brakes on the willingness of citizens and companies to invest." The criticism targets the planned 2027 amendment to the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) and the so-called grid package, which the federal government says will align the renewables build-out more closely with cost efficiency, supply security and actual grid capacity. It includes better regional steering of new capacity — and, from 2027, small, mostly privately installed systems under 25 kilowatts would lose permanent subsidies.
The record lands in a year of global solar milestones. In China, installed photovoltaic capacity has overtaken coal (1.286 TW versus 1.285 TW as of the end of July), and the International Energy Agency reported more than 600 gigawatts of new solar capacity added worldwide in 2026. In Germany, the open question is whether the policy framework keeps pace with the panels.
