European Solar Day: Celebrating the solar opportunity

The longest day of 2024 in the Northern Hemisphere is 21 June, theoretically the day with the most potential for solar energy. It also marks European Solar Day, an annual celebration marking the power and potential of the sun. The sun’s annual potential may peak during the summer equinox but the broader opportunity for solar power continues to have significant growth potential.

Momentum has been growing for a global tripling of renewable energy capacity around the world by 2030, with more than 130 countries signing up to that pledge during, or after, COP28.

The REPower EU 2030 ambition involves tripling solar energy capacity to 600GW. This goal is based on the efforts of the EU27 Member States, which have been increasing their solar energy targets. By the end of June, these targets will be announced in the 2030 National Energy and Climate Plans. Additionally, the UK has an ambition to deploy 70GW of solar energy by 2035. 

Trade association SolarPower Europe expects similar growth in solar jobs across the 27 EU member nations. Its latest five-year rolling forecast of solar employment predicts a near doubling of the 2022 figure of approximately 648,000 to over 1.2 million by 2027.

Between now and the next European Solar Day, the Lightsource bp team will continue to advance the contribution renewable energy can make around the globe as we develop our pipeline of more than 60GW of opportunities.

Lightsource bp entered the Greek market in 2020 and has since developed a portfolio of solar and storage projects exceeding 1GW. Recently we have entered into an agreement with the funding of the European Union – NextGenerationEU as part of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan ‘Greece 2.0’ for the Enipeas project, which is one of the largest solar projects in Europe, with a nominal capacity of 560MWp. The project, which is currently under construction, is expected to generate 0.90 TWh in the first year of operation, equivalent to powering 225,000 households, covering almost 2% of domestic production and avoiding 379 kt CO2 emission annually.

Learn more about the power of solar.