By Chisaki Watanabe
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Scale and speed of construction are reducing costs: IEEFA
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New solar capacity added last year jumped 31% from 2016
India and China are driving a rapid global expansion in large-scale, solar power developments as the cost of building new projects falls, according to an analysis by Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.
“Solar energy is taking an increasingly prominent role in driving the ongoing transformation of global electricity generation markets alongside gains in storage, wind, hydroelectricity and energy efficiency,” IEEFA said in a report.
The world’s largest operating utility-scale solar projects are concentrated in China and India, according to IEEFA. Based on company and press reports, as well as its own estimates, those include:
| Ranking | Project Name | Size MW | Country | Proponent |
| 1 | Tengger Desert Solar Park | 1,547 | China | China National Grid Zhongwei Power Supply Co |
| 2 | Kurnool Ultra Mega Solar Park | 1,000 | India | Andhra Pradesh Solar Power Corporation Pvt Ltd |
| 3 | Datong Solar Power Top Runner Base | 1,000 | China | Multiple |
| 4 | Yanchi Ningxia Solar Park | 1,000 | China | Huawei Technologies Co |
| 5 | Longyangxia Dam Solar Park | 850 | China | State Power Investment Corporation (China) |
| 6 | Adani Kamuthi Solar Plant | 648 | India | Adani Green |
| 7 | Solar Star | 579 | U.S. | BHE Renewables |
| 8 | Topaz Solar Farm | 550 | U.S. | First Solar |
| 9 | Desert Sunlight Solar Farm | 550 | U.S. | NextEra Energy, GE Energy Financial & Sumitomo |
| 10 | Nova Olinda Solar Farm | 292 | Brazil | Enel Green Power |
China added 53 gigawatts of the 98 gigawatts of new solar capacity built last year, a 31 percent increase from the total 2017, IEEFA said, citing Bloomberg New Energy Finance data. Meanwhile, the per unit cost of electricity over the life of a generating asset fell 15 percent year-on-year to $86 a megawatt hour
Source: Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis
