The Middle East and North Africa installed 12.2 gigawatts of solar capacity in 2025, reinforcing solar power’s position as the region’s leading renewable energy source, according to a new report by energy transition think tank Dii Desert Energy.

The report, Renewables, Hydrogen and Energy Storage Developments in the MENA Region, shows that cumulative solar capacity across the region’s 17 countries has reached 34.5 GW. 

Total installed renewable energy capacity now stands at 43.7 GW, up from 30.3 GW at the end of 2024. Solar accounts for the majority of that growth, underscoring its central role in the region’s energy transition.

Saudi Arabia emerged in 2025 as the country with the largest operational solar capacity in the MENA region. The commissioning of several large-scale projects during the year pushed the kingdom’s total installed solar capacity beyond 11 GW. 

The United Arab Emirates follows with more than 6.5 GW, driven largely by continued expansion of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park. Egypt and Jordan rank third and fourth, with 2.5 GW and 2.1 GW respectively. Oman crossed the 1 GW mark in 2025 after bringing the Manah I and II projects online, lifting its solar capacity to over 1.6 GW.

Beyond installations already completed, the scale of projects in development points to continued acceleration. The region’s renewable energy pipeline has grown from 131 GW a year ago to 202 GW. 

Solar dominates this pipeline, accounting for 130 GW. Of the total pipeline, 43.7 GW is operational, 38 GW is under construction, 34 GW is under development, and 87 GW consists of announced projects or those backed by memoranda of understanding.

This expansion places the MENA region close to its aggregated national renewable energy targets for 2030, which currently total 235 GW. Dii Desert Energy notes that, if current trends persist, solar deployment alone could push the region beyond those collective goals. 

In response, the think tank has updated its scenarios for renewable energy growth by the end of the decade. Its conservative baseline projects 165 GW of installed renewables by 2030. A “balanced” scenario aligns with the full 235 GW of national targets, while a more ambitious scenario estimates 290 GW, which the report describes as reflecting the region’s technical and market potential.

Despite narrowing the gap to these targets, the report cautions that progress is not guaranteed. Sustaining momentum will depend on the resilience of supply chains, continued access to financing, and the ability of national grids to absorb rising shares of variable renewable power.

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Energy storage is increasingly part of that equation. The MENA region had around 25 gigawatt-hours of operational utility-scale energy storage capacity in 2025, a figure Dii Desert Energy expects to grow to 156 GWh by 2030. 

The storage market is shifting away from thermal energy storage linked to concentrated solar power plants toward battery energy storage systems, which now account for roughly half of operational capacity.

According to the report, falling battery costs, down by around 80% compared with a decade ago, combined with higher renewable penetration on regional grids have driven this shift. 

Battery systems are being developed both as standalone projects and alongside large solar installations, strengthening solar’s role not only as a generation technology, but as a core component of the region’s evolving power systems.