Distributed solar generating capacity is the fastest-growing power source in Brazil

Growth in distributed solar generation capacity has driven growth in total electricity generation capacity in Brazil since 2019. Distributed solar generation capacity grew from less than 1 gigawatt (GW) in 2018 to 40 GW in 2025 through June, accounting for 43% of all electricity capacity additions over that period.

In 2012, Brazil implemented net metering policies, which have recently contributed to large increases in distributed solar generation capacity. Compared with distributed solar, utility-scale solar generating capacity at the end of June was only 17.9 GW, according to the Brazilian Electricity Regulatory Agency (ANEEL). As of June 30, 2025, total solar electric generating capacity in Brazil was 23% of the total electric generating capacity.

Home and building owners installed more than 3.7 million renewable distributed generation systems in Brazil as of June 30, 2025. Unlike centralized generators, where power plants produce electricity and send it long distances over power lines to customers, distributed generators produce near the point of use, for example, by using solar arrays on the rooftops of homes and businesses. In Brazil, solar photovoltaic dominates the distributed generation sector, representing 99% of the country’s total distributed generation capacity. Small hydroelectric and wind account for the remaining 1% of distributed generation.

The net metering policies in Brazil have evolved several times since 2012. In 2012, ANEEL implemented a net metering policy that allowed owners of distributed generation systems in Brazil to sell excess electricity to the grid for billing credits. The policy initially allowed small generators with installed capacity up to 1 megawatt (MW) of hydro, solar, biomass, wind, and qualified cogeneration of renewable sources to qualify.

In 2015, ANEEL increased the qualified capacity to 5 MW for solar and most other qualified renewable sources and 3 MW for small hydropower units.

In 2022 and 2023, a new law and additional regulations restricted small generators with storage to a capacity no larger than 3 MW to qualify for net metering if they used hydro, solar, biomass, wind, and qualified cogeneration of renewable sources. The 5-MW limit for solar generation without storage remained.

The states in the south and southeast regions of Brazil have the most distributed solar capacity: São Paulo (5.8 GW), Minas Gerais (4.9 GW), Paraná (3.7 GW), Rio Grande do Sul (3.4 GW), and Mato Grosso (2.6 GW). In 2022, São Paulo surpassed Minas Gerais in solar distributed generation capacity. São Paulo has implemented favorable state policies in its long-term energy plans and local regulations, such as tax concessions for installing solar generation.

The expansion of installed solar capacity, both utility-scale and distributed generation, appears likely to continue, although its future pace is less clear. As of June 30, 2025, there were 122 GW of planned utility-scale solar facilities listed in ANEEL’s data. However, only 6 GW of the planned projects are currently under construction.

Principal contributors: Katherine Antonio, Slade Johnson