Germany installed 3.5 GW of solar power capacity in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2023, a 105.8% year-over-year (YoY) growth from 1.7 GW.

On a quarter-over-quarter basis, installations witnessed a drop of 7.8% from 3.8 GW.

The data was published in a recent report by the German Federal Network Agency Bundesnetzagentur.

The total capacity installed in 2023 stood at 14.2 GW, a 91% increase from the 7.45 GW recorded in 2022. This was the highest-ever solar capacity installed in a year in Germany.

Mercom had earlier reported solar installations for Q3 2023 to be 3.4 GW, which were later revised by the Federal Network Agency to 3.8 GW.

At the end of December 2023, the country’s cumulative solar capacity stood at 81.2 GW.

The country installed 1.37 GW in October, 1.25 GW in November, and 880 MW in December 2023.

The states of Bayern, Baden-Württemberg, and Nordrhein-Westfalen remained at the forefront of solar installations within the country, accounting for 70.4% of the solar capacity installed during the quarter.

Bayern led the country’s solar installations with 3.64 MW installed, followed by Nordrhein-Westfalen with 2.13 MW and Baden-Württemberg with 1.88 MW.

For the first time, renewable energy sources supplied the majority of electricity consumption in Germany, representing approximately 59.7% of the net public electricity generation in 2023.

According to the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE, the portion of renewables in the overall electricity mix was reported at 57.1%.

In August, the German government approved a $63.3 billion green investment plan to aid renewable energy expansion and reduce carbon emissions.

In July 2023, Germany’s auction to install 191 MW of rooftop solar projects was oversubscribed by 79%, receiving a total of 155 bids with a volume of 342 MW. A total of 79 bids with a volume of 193 MW were accepted.