Market

UK solar reaches 23.4 GW and 2.16 million installations, with 296,000 added in a year, the most in any 12 months on record

DESNZ's monthly deployment tables, published on 29 October with data to the end of September, put UK capacity up 8.9% on a year earlier, and September alone added 27,655 installations.

30 October 2026 · Source: DESNZ Solar photovoltaics deployment

DESNZ published its September 2026 solar deployment tables on 29 October. Provisionally, the UK had 23.4 GW of solar capacity across 2,160,000 installations at the end of September, an increase of 8.9% (1.9 GW) on September 2025. The department says 296,000 installations were added over the past year, the most in any 12-month period on record. Last month's release described 291,000 as the most since 2012, so the record wording is new. In September itself there were 27,655 new installations adding 145 MW, and 19,449 of those were on residential buildings, adding 110 MW. The figures are provisional and are normally revised as late data arrives.

The pace is holding rather than spiking. DESNZ notes the median over the past 12 months is more than 24,000 installations a month, against around 3,000 a month between 2016 and 2021 after the Renewables Obligation closed to new entrants. Over the last 12 months more than 1 GW of domestic solar was installed across almost 200,000 homes, yet homes still account for only about 31% of total capacity. At least 38% (8.8 GW) comes from ground-mounted or standalone sites, including 41 operational solar farms accredited on Contracts for Difference, 20 of which came online during 2026.

The regional table, added in the August release, is the useful local read. At the end of September the South East had 312,166 installations and 3,851.6 MW, the largest installation count of any region of the UK, ahead of the South West on 276,898, although the South West leads on capacity at 4,613.4 MW. Between August and September the South East gained about 3,600 installations on the revised figures, and its count is up about 14% on September 2025 (272,827). The table covers the whole South East, not Kent alone, so it says nothing specific about the county.

For a household weighing up panels, the main takeaway is that installer demand is running at a scale not seen for over a decade, which tends to favour buyers who get several quotes and check MCS certification. DESNZ also flags a limit on the data: it does not yet capture all unsubsidised installations under 150 kW that are not recorded in its sources, so the published totals may understate the true position. The next update is due on 26 November.

Read the original: DESNZ Solar photovoltaics deployment. Commentary is Sandwich Solar's own editorial view; the original reporting is credited to its publisher.

Get a solar quote See MCS installations