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China's cumulative solar photovoltaic capacity reached 885.68 gigawatts at the end of 2024. In the last few years, solar power has become an increasingly important energy source around the world.

Leading solar PV markets

The solar photovoltaic sector continues to attract investors, with investment volumes that eclipse the deals made in other markets, including the wind power and biomass energy sectors. Global cumulative installed solar PV capacity amounted to approximately 2.2 terawatts in 2024, up from less than 2.6 gigawatts in 2003. China, the United States, India, and Japan were the most important markets for new solar photovoltaic installations in 2023.

Solar PV modules

The process to convert solar radiation into direct current electricity requires the use of inverters and solar photovoltaic modules. Such modules consist of a number of solar cells which are usually made from semiconductor materials such as silicon. The most widely used materials to produce solar cells include multicrystalline (also called polycrystalline) silicon or monocrystalline (also called single-crystal) silicon. The price of solar modules has decreased greatly in the last years, which has contributed to the widespread use of solar energy.Ìý