Canada forecast to add up to 26GW of solar PV by 2035

Between 2035 and 2050, the total installed capacity for solar PV, wind and energy storage will grow by a further 50-60%. This growth would lead wind and solar to increase their share of electricity supply to Canada from 10% today to 21% in 2035, mostly boosted by wind’s growth (30-51GW).

The three technologies combined are expected to account for more than 70% of all new electricity supply capacity built in Canada between 2025 and 2050.

The up to 26GW of solar PV additions would equal a more than tenfold increase from the 2.3GW of installed capacity for the technology as of July 2025. Energy storage would see a similar growth pattern to solar PV over the coming decade, as there is 1GW of installed energy storage as of July 2025. Wind leads the charge among the three technologies, with more than 17GW of installed capacity as of July 2025.

Moreover, the report mentions that on top of the installed capacity, there are currently 600MW of solar PV and 3.4GW of energy storage active procurement opportunities and an additional of 11.5GW of technology-agnostic or mixed solar-wind projects. However, CanREA said that these procurements only “represent the tip of the iceberg.”

Across the three technologies, the forecasted deployment could represent, on average, an annual investment of CA$14-20 billion (US$10.2-14.5 billion) between 2025 and 2035.

Most of the installed utility-scale solar capacity is located in Alberta, with nearly 2GW of operational solar PV, followed by Ontario and Prairies.