Switzerland’s solar market grew by nearly 1.8 GW (1.79 GW) in 2024 – a 10% increase over the previous year – marking the 7th consecutive year of expansion, according to Swissolar. Solar energy met more than 10% of the country’s electricity demand in 2024, with the share expected to rise to around 14% this year.
Despite steady growth, the pace has slowed. Swissolar points out that between 2020 and 2023, the Swiss solar market recorded an average annual growth of 50% compared to 10% in 2024, expanding the cumulative installed capacity to 8.2 GW.
Nevertheless, if the market can maintain this growth of 10% and annual additions of 1.8 GW to 2.0 GW for solar PV, it will be on track to help achieve the federal target of 35 TWh of renewable energies for 2035. Around 28 TWh, or 80% of this target, is to come from solar systems. The Swiss Federal Council is also contemplating an interim target of 18.7 TWh of solar power by 2030.
In 2024, while growth was recorded across all system sizes, categories and application areas, it was the single-family homes (SFH) category that registered an annual decline of 3%. The association attributes the decline to the uncertainty created by the impending introduction of the new Electricity Act.
Notably, Switzerland’s new Electricity Act, StromVG, plans to introduce several amendments to boost the country’s electricity supply from renewable energy sources. It is designed to promote local electricity consumption and offer alternatives to selling electricity to distribution network operators. To be enforced in 2 stages, one set of measures has already been implemented effective January 1, 2025, and the other will be in force from January 1, 2026.
According to Swissolar, “Despite new opportunities, the law is currently causing uncertainty and potentially stagnating the market. Implementation is particularly difficult: rigid framework conditions are hindering the development of the important opportunities for local electricity through ZEV (self-consumption community) and LEG (local electricity communities).”
The association demands that the government offer bigger grid fee discounts for LEG and allow cross-level electricity sales. Also, solar power remuneration should reflect hourly market prices with a guaranteed minimum, now under parliamentary debate, to better align producer behavior with market and grid needs.
Swissolar believes that till the market settles with the new changes, Switzerland will likely see its solar deployments declining by around 10% annually to 1.6 GW, before stabilizing in 2026 and beyond.
In terms of the major trends in 2024, Swissolar sees a general trend towards larger systems. The average size of a PV system rose from 28.2 kW to 32.1 kW within a year. For the SFH category, the increase was from 12.7 kW to 13.3 kW.
“In light of the growing areas of application for photovoltaics, the statistical categories have also been expanded. Newly included are agri-PV and open-space systems, as well as systems in parking areas and noise barriers,” points out Swissolar. “The alpine "Solar Express" systems, four of which are currently under construction, are not yet included. The planned extension will enable further projects that are well advanced in planning to be realized in the coming years.”
Among other trends noticed, the addition of storage systems is on the rise as the number of newly installed battery energy storage systems (BESS) increased 4% year-on-year (YoY). Their uptake in the commercial and industrial (C&I) segment rose 6%, thanks to falling prices. For the SFH category, 47% of all systems are already equipped with storage, compared to 42% in the previous year.
At the end of 2024, the total installed storage capacity in Switzerland reached 896,000 kWh. Swissolar expects the use of BESS to become even more attractive with the new Electricity Law, starting in 2025, thanks to the exemption from grid usage fees.
