Solar panel manufacturers worldwide can build far more panels than anyone will actually install this year. That glut of manufacturing capacity keeps pushing prices down — good news for anyone buying solar, tougher news for anyone running a factory.

Polysilicon capacity is running at 3.2 times actual demand; module capacity is running close behind at 3 times demand, leaving an excess of more than 1.2 terawatts at the module stage alone. That kind of glut is exactly why solar keeps getting cheaper even as other technologies get more expensive.

Source: Intertek CEA, PV Supply, Technology, and Policy Report, Q2 2026; via pv magazine USA, Sept. 1, 2026.