What is global photovoltaic power potential by country?

The World Bank has published the study Global Photovoltaic Power Potential by Country, which provides an aggregated and harmonized view on solar resource and the potential for development of utility-scale photovoltaic (PV) power plants from the perspective of countries and regions.

Are solar photovoltaics a viable option for less-developed countries?

Many less-developed countries—in terms of the human development index, reliability of electricity supply, and access to electricity—tend to have very high practical solar photovoltaic potential, so far untapped.

What is the average solar PV output per kilowatt hour?

In total, 93% of the global population lives in countries that have an average daily solar PV potential between 3.0 and 5.0 kWh/kWp. Around 70 countries boast excellent conditions for solar PV, where average daily output exceeds 4.5 kilowatt hours per installed kilowatt of capacity (kWh/kWp) – enough to boil around 25 liters of water.

Is the global range of practical PV potential (pvout) narrow?

The results show that the global range of practical PV potential (PVOUT) is, surprisingly, rather narrow. The distribution of air temperature (the second most important geographical factor, inversely affecting PVOUT) partially counteracts the distribution of theoretical potential by GHI (the main contributing factor).

What does the pvout metric Mean for solar power?

Altogether, the PVOUT metric highlights the vast potential for solar power in all regions, especially in areas that currently lag global leaders but have the right combination of abundant sunshine and space to potentially emerge as the new global solar leaders in the coming decades.

What raster data is used to calculate photovoltaic power potential (pvout)?

The primary input is a global raster data layer, representing the long-term average of photovoltaic power potential (PVOUT), calculated by the Solargis approach. We consider a typical large-scale PV power plant.