Tunisia, which is focusing on solar energy in its energy transition strategy, imported solar panels with a capacity of 655 megawatts from China between July 2024 and June 2025.
This places the country in 6th position among Chinese solar panel importers in Africa, out of 25 countries cited in a report titled “the first evidence of a take-off in solar in Africa” recently published by the energy and climate think tank Ember.
Morocco (4th) imported 915 MW and Egypt (5th) 854 MW.
The lion’s share of these imports went to South Africa (3,784 MW), which retained its position as the continent’s top buyer, despite a slowdown in demand due to stabilized electricity supply, followed by Nigeria (1,700 MW) and Algeria (1,199 MW) in third place.
Africa’s solar take-off
According to the report, Africa is currently experiencing a “take-off in solar.” Imports of solar panels from China by 25 African countries rose by 60%, reaching a total capacity of 15,032 MW, compared to 9,379 MW imported during the same period in 2024.
Over the past year, 25 African countries imported at least 100 MW of solar capacity from China, which produces roughly 80% of the world’s solar panels, compared to 15 countries the previous year, the report notes.
Some countries recorded very high growth rates. Imports to Algeria increased 33-fold, Zambia eight-fold, Botswana seven-fold, and Sudan six-fold, while imports to Liberia, the DRC, Benin, Angola, and Ethiopia more than tripled.
Despite these record solar panel imports, there is no data showing how many have already been installed, the report notes.
Analysis suggests that recent imports could significantly contribute to electricity production in many African countries.
The report explains that solar panel imports could effectively reduce overall energy imports.
Savings from avoiding diesel use can offset the cost of a solar panel in six months in Nigeria, and even faster in other countries.
In nine of the top ten solar panel importing countries, the value of refined petroleum imports exceeds that of solar panels by a factor of 30 to 107.
However, Ember’s authors caution that the data only covers solar panel exports to Africa, not the number of panels actually installed on the continent.
Panels are sometimes re-exported to neighboring countries, shipped out of Africa to avoid customs duties or taxes, or stored for long periods.
It is worth noting that installed renewable energy capacity in Africa increased from 32.54 gigawatts (GW) in 2014 to 62.10 GW in 2023, a 91% growth over the past decade, according to a report published on March 27 by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).
Titled “Renewable Capacity Statistics 2024”, the report notes, however, that the continent’s recorded capacity represents only 1.6% of global renewable capacity.
