Egypt is emerging as a key market in Africa’s rapidly expanding solar power sector, with the country expected to add about 2 GW of solar capacity in 2026 and step up efforts to localise solar equipment manufacturing, according to a new report by the Cabinet’s Information and Decision Support Centre (IDSC).
The report, titled “Pathways for Solar Power Expansion in Emerging and Developing Economies,” said Egypt added about 500 MW of solar capacity in 2025, ranking third among Africa’s largest solar markets after South Africa and Nigeria.
The country is also seeking to move beyond solar power generation and develop a domestic manufacturing base for solar cells, panels and related equipment.
Chinese company Sunrev Solar is developing factories in Egypt to produce solar cells and modules, with a capacity of up to 2 GW each. The company also plans to increase its use of locally sourced production inputs.
The project is expected to create more than 1,800 direct jobs.
Other planned investments include an industrial complex with capacity to produce 2 GW of solar cells and 2 GW of solar panels, as well as 1 GWh of energy storage capacity. The projects involve Egyptian, Chinese, Bahraini and Emirati companies and are expected to create about 841 direct jobs.
The expansion is also supporting employment. The estimated number of jobs in Egypt’s solar sector reached about 5,900 in 2024, as installations increased and efforts to develop local manufacturing gathered pace.
Egypt’s expansion comes as Africa enters a new phase of solar growth.
The continent is home to about 60 per cent of the world’s best solar resources, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). Installed solar capacity rose from about 3 GW in 2016 to 18.4 GW in 2024 and 22.2 GW in 2025, more than seven times the 2016 level.
The Global Solar Council said Africa recorded its highest-ever annual solar additions in 2025, with new capacity rising by about 54 per cent from the previous year.
The continent’s 10 largest solar markets accounted for around 90 per cent of new capacity added in 2025. South Africa led with about 1.6 GW, followed by Nigeria with 803 MW, Egypt with 500 MW and Algeria with 400 MW.
Eight African countries added more than 100 MW each during the year, compared with four in 2024.
The growth is expected to continue in 2026. South Africa is projected to add about 3.3 GW, Egypt 2 GW, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo about 1.7 GW each, Algeria 1.4 GW and Morocco about 1 GW.
The report said the actual size of Africa’s solar market could be higher than official estimates because distributed systems are difficult to track.
Such systems accounted for about 44 per cent of new installations in 2025, compared with 56 per cent for large-scale projects. The trend highlights the growing use of solar power by households and businesses alongside major utility-scale projects.
The report said the global solar sector is undergoing a rapid transformation, with photovoltaic (PV) energy becoming one of the main sources of new electricity capacity.
