“Solar surge:” China smashes PV export records as energy crisis fast-tracks fossil fuel exodus

The US-Israel war with Iran has had a major impact on global energy markets, mainly through driving up oil prices – and destabilising supply – enough to result in a major boost to electric vehicle sales and a major rethink on diesel fuel use up and down global industrial supply chains.

But new data has this week revealed that solar is also benefiting from the impact of the current energy crisis, with exports from global PV producing powerhouse, China, hitting a record 68 gigawatts (GW) in March, double the previous month. 

According to new analysis from Ember, based on data from the Chinese customs authority, solar exports equivalent to Spain’s entire installed capacity were dispatched from China over the month of March, surpassing the previous record set in August 2025 by 49 per cent. 

The data shows all-time records for solar imports from China were also set by 50 countries in March, Australia included, buoyed by China’s April 01 abolition of export tax rebates, which has added 9 per cent to solar panel costs.

Exports to Africa, for example, rose by 176 per cent compared to February 2026 to reach 10 GW in March 2026, while exports to Asia doubled to reach 39 GW – both new all-time records and  the two regions, combined, making up three-quarters of the boost in exports.

“Elsewhere,” says Ember, “records were reached in other markets acutely affected by high oil and gas prices, including Japan, Australia, and the EU.” 

India was on top of chart for record solar imports in March, with 11.3 GW, followed by Indonesia with 6.2 GW. Australia comes in at number 19 on the list, with just under one 1 GW of imports for the month, at 0.95 GW – an all-time record.

A further 60 countries imported their highest levels in six months. 

And it is not necessarily solar modules that China is exporting at record rates. Ember notes that exports of PV cells and wafers have been soaring – in fact, at a rate overtaking panel exports in October 2025, with panels increasingly being assembled outside of China. 

“As well as installing more solar domestically, many countries in Asia and Africa are moving further up the solar value chain, building growing solar manufacturing and assembly capabilities,” the Ember analysis says.

According to the data, solar panel exports rose 91 per cent from February levels to reach 32 GW in March 2026, while exports of solar cells and wafers rose by 108 per cent to 36 GW. 

“Fossil shocks are boosting the solar surge,” says Euan Graham, senior analyst at Ember. 

“Solar has already become the engine of the global economy, and now the current fossil fuel price shocks are taking it up a gear.

“Countries are importing solar panels at record levels, and building up their own domestic assembly and manufacturing capabilities to address surging global demand.”

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