New IRENA Reports Confirm Renewable Competitiveness and Growth Across Portuguese-Speaking Countries
IRENA’s latest publications, Renewable Power Generation Costs in 2025 and Renewable Energy Statistics 2026, confirm that renewable energy continues to establish itself as the most competitive option for new power generation while gaining an increasing share of the global electricity system. In 2025, installed renewable power capacity surpassed coal capacity for the first time worldwide, while more than 90% of newly commissioned renewable capacity came online at lower costs than the cheapest fossil-fuel alternative.
After more than a decade of cost reductions, solar photovoltaic (PV) power stabilised at USD 44/MWh, while wind power reached USD 33/MWh. Since 2010, the costs of these technologies have fallen by 89% and 71%, respectively, consolidating renewables as the most cost-effective source of new power generation in most markets.
Brazil has also emerged as one of the world’s leading benchmarks for solar competitiveness, recording an average generation cost of USD 37/MWh, among the lowest globally.
Across Portuguese-speaking countries, IRENA data reveal a positive trend in renewable energy capacity growth. Between 2024 and 2025, Brazil increased its renewable capacity from 213.8 GW to 228.2 GW (+6.7%) and Portugal from 20.5 GW to 21.7 GW (+5.6%), while Cabo Verde and São Tomé and Príncipe recorded growth rates of 25.9% and 25%, respectively.
Solar PV continues to be the technology driving renewable growth across Portuguese-speaking countries. Brazil added approximately 10 GW of new solar capacity in a single year, increasing from 37.5 GW to 47.5 GW, while Portugal added around 1 GW. Cabo Verde expanded its solar capacity from 28 MW to 43 MW, underlining the increasing importance of this technology in the region’s renewable energy expansion.
The trend observed across Portuguese-speaking countries reflects a broader development across the African continent, where solar energy continues to grow at a rapid pace. According to African Energy Live Data, the amount of grid-connected solar capacity installed in 2026 has already surpassed the total installed throughout 2025.
By contrast, hydropower remains the dominant renewable source in several African Portuguese-speaking countries, particularly Angola and Mozambique, but without significant growth between 2024 and 2025. This trend highlights the importance of technological diversification and the growing role of solar power in the next phase of renewable energy deployment.
IRENA’s findings are particularly relevant at a time when the incoming COP31 Presidency has proposed increasing electricity’s share of final energy demand to 35% by 2035. According to the Agency, achieving this objective will require raising the share of renewables in global electricity generation to around 78% by 2035. The growing competitiveness of renewable energy therefore reinforces its role as the main driver of the electrification of transport, industry, buildings and clean cooking solutions.
Beyond environmental benefits, IRENA highlights that renewable power generation avoided hundreds of billions of dollars in fossil-fuel imports and billions of tonnes of CO₂ emissions in 2025, strengthening its contribution to energy security, economic competitiveness and the resilience of energy systems.
IRENA nevertheless stresses that the main challenge is no longer technological, but financial. Financing costs continue to have a decisive impact on project viability, being strongly influenced by factors such as country risk, regulatory stability and access to capital on competitive terms.