Ireland has passed 3 GW of installed solar capacity, according to Irish PV association Solar Ireland. This comes from both large utility-scale sites and rooftop installations, according to the industry association.

“Three gigawatts is a big moment for Irish solar,” said Ronan Power, CEO, Solar Ireland, pointing out that a lot of progress has been made in a relatively short time as Ireland’s first utility-scale solar farm was connected to the grid in 2022.

“Four years later, we have more than 200,000 homes with solar on their roofs, businesses generating their own electricity and solar power plants capable of supplying more than a third of national electricity demand at peak,” said Power.

“There has been huge investment and commitment behind that growth from Government, industry, communities and everyone involved in getting these projects connected,” he added.

The few hundred megawatts required to take Ireland to the 3 GW mark were only realized in the past few weeks as the last official statement from the government on installation numbers put the figure at 2.6 GW and this was in June.

According to Central Statistics Office figures, grid-scale solar farms generated 1.1 GWh of Ireland’s electricity in 2025 – a 51% increase compared to 2024.

The country’s solar industry remains set on the 2030 target of 8 GW of installed solar capacity. Developers are preparing for the sixth renewable energy auction, RESS 6, due in December. It is the first auction to incorporate the European Union’s new rules around non-price criteria under the Net Zero Industry Act (NZIA).

Speaking to pv magazine this week, Solar Ireland’s policy manager Leanne Donovan said solar is expected to compete well, but it is too soon to predict how things will turn out.

The organization is lobbying the government to ensure solar, battery energy storage and grid updates are included in the upcoming national budget for 2027.

Power said Budget 2027 needs to unlock the full value of the solar that Irish developers have spent the past few years building.

Following the 3 GW announcement, Ireland’s Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment, Darragh O’Brien, pledged to continue investing in solar.

“With continued investment in solar – across homes, farms, businesses and large grid-scale projects – Ireland is building a growing source of homegrown, clean electricity, and strengthening our energy security,” he said.

The distribution systems operator, ESB Networks, is delivering the government’s investment program of grid infrastructure upgrades.