Solar electricity every hour of every day is here and it changes everything

The report argues that rapid declines in battery costs have made near-continuous solar power (24/365 generation) an economic reality in sunny regions. In cities like Las Vegas, achieving 97% reliability for a constant power supply is now cost-competitive at $104/MWh, which is cheaper than new coal and nuclear power. The analysis demonstrates that a relatively small amount of storage—approximately 17 kWh of battery for every 1 kW of stable 24-hour power—is sufficient for most sunny locations. This shift allows solar to support 24/7 clean energy contracts for energy-intensive industries and significantly reduces the need for expensive grid expansions by allowing more capacity to be installed behind existing connections.

• In sunny regions, it is technically and economically feasible to get very close to a constant 24/365 solar electricity supply. For example, Las Vegas can achieve 97% reliability, while Muscat in Oman can reach 99% using a configuration of 6 GW of solar panels and 17 GWh of battery storage to provide 1 GW of continuous supply.
• The cost of achieving 97% reliability for 24/365 solar generation in sunny cities has fallen significantly, reaching an estimated Levelised Cost of Electricity (LCOE) of $104/MWh. This represents a 22% decrease from the previous year's estimate of $132/MWh.
• Near-continuous solar power is now more cost-effective than new coal and nuclear energy in sunny regions. The $104/MWh cost for 97% reliability is lower than the LCOE for new coal ($118/MWh) and nuclear ($182/MWh).
• To deliver 1 kW of stable, round-the-clock power on an average day in a sunny city like Las Vegas, a system requires 5 kW of fixed solar panels and a 17 kWh battery. This 17 kWh capacity is close to optimal for most sunny regions globally.
• Battery-backed solar can significantly reduce the need for grid expansions. By flattening the generation curve, batteries allow up to five times more solar capacity to be installed using the same grid connection capacity.
• The rapid decline in battery costs is a primary driver of these economic shifts. Average global battery prices fell by 40% in 2024 to $165/kWh, with some specific tenders in Saudi Arabia reporting prices as low as $72/kWh.
• While sunny cities can reach over 90% reliability, less sunny cities face greater challenges. For instance, Birmingham in the UK can reach 62% of the way to 24/365 solar generation, and Wuhan in China reaches 74%.

APA

Rangelova, K., & Jones, D. (2025). Solar electricity every hour of every day is here and it changes everything. Ember. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2025/06/Ember-24-Hour-Solar-Electricity-June-2025-6.pdf

Chicago

Rangelova, Kostantsa, and Dave Jones. Solar electricity every hour of every day is here and it changes everything. Ember, 2025. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2025/06/Ember-24-Hour-Solar-Electricity-June-2025-6.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Rangelova |first1=Kostantsa |last2=Jones |first2=Dave |title=Solar electricity every hour of every day is here and it changes everything |publisher=Ember |date=21 June 2025 |url=https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2025/06/Ember-24-Hour-Solar-Electricity-June-2025-6.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rangelova2025solar, author = {Rangelova, Kostantsa and Jones, Dave}, title = {{Solar electricity every hour of every day is here and it changes everything}}, institution = {Ember}, year = {2025}, month = jun, url = {https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2025/06/Ember-24-Hour-Solar-Electricity-June-2025-6.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }