Solar PV installations in India reached a record 14.4GW in the first quarter of 2026, according to a report from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA).
Installations nearly doubled year-on-year from the 7.7GW PV additions in Q1 2025, as shown in the chart below. Last year was already a record year for solar PV in India, with around 37GW of new installations, according to data from analysts JMK Research and Mercom India released earlier this year.
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Solar PV’s growth over the past couple of years was driven by an increase in rooftop solar under the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana programme, which aims to install rooftop solar systems in ten million households across India. Since its launch in 2024, the programme has added nearly 10GW of rooftop PV capacity between Q1 2024 and Q1 2026.
Solar PV remains the driving technology for new capacity additions, accounting for 76% of all new power generation capacity in Q1 2026. With the record PV capacity additions in Q1 2026, India also surpassed a cumulative installed capacity of 150GW during the first three months of the year and is now the third largest in installed PV capacity.
According to IEEFA, the ongoing momentum for the technology reflects a sustained build-out driven by improved project execution and supported by a growing pipeline of hybrid solar-wind projects.
However, the rapid build-out of renewables has begun to test grid integration capabilities, added IEEFA.
Investments decreased by 65.8%
Despite continued growth in solar PV, investments in renewables in Q1 2026 fell sharply from US$9.8 billion to US$3.3 billion, a 65.8% year-on-year decline.
According to IEEFA, the decline is “likely a reflection of increasing caution amid grid integration challenges, curtailment risks and transmission constraints.”
The rapid growth of renewables is outpacing transmission and grid integration infrastructure.
Among the most notable investments in Q1 2026 are Premier Energies’ US$1.17 billion to add 7.4GW of solar cell manufacturing capacity in Andhra Pradesh and 6GW module manufacturing capacity in Telangana, and Inox Clean Energy’s equity financing in January 2026 to expand its independent power production portfolio and expand its manufacturing capacity.
