Solar power is also being favoured by UK Energy Secretary Ed Miliband. Credit: Designer_Pics/Shutterstock.

Ireland has surpassed 1.2GW of cumulative installed solar PV capacity, with the residential segment of the market making up 20% of the total additional capacity installed over the past six months.

The country now has more than 100,000 rooftop solar projects, adding more than 400MW of clean energy to the national grid, according to new figures from ESB networks, Ireland’s distribution system operator.

Nicholas Tarrant, managing director of Ireland at ESB Networks, said: “The delivery of 100,000 rooftop solar renewable generator connections is significant. Solar energy is Ireland’s fastest-growing renewable power source, and the 400MW of microgeneration complements a further 800MW of larger-scale solar connected in recent years. It is testament to customers choosing to significantly reduce their carbon footprint and help displace the use of imported fossil fuels.”

According to PV Magazine, ESB Networks said that rooftop construction of solar panels has been picking up speed. In February, ESB Networks connected 1GW of solar power to Ireland’s grid, comprising 500MW of utility-scale solar connections, 300MW of microgeneration such as rooftop solar and 200MW of non-exporting solar generation.

Eamon Ryan, Ireland’s Minister for Climate, described the nation’s push for solar as a “rooftop revolution”, the same term used by UK Energy Secretary Ed Miliband when referring to his desire to triple solar power capacity by 2030.

Under the direction of Miliband, the UK Government recently approved the construction of at least three new solar farms in the Midlands of England that could power at least 400,000 homes.

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Decisions to expand solar power come after the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) said that the world will fail to meet its goal to triple renewable energy capacity by 2030 if capacity continues to grow at a sluggish rate. According to IRENA, renewables capacity grew by 14% last year, but to reach the 2030 goal this figure needs to be 16.4%.