BRUSSELS, Dec 17 Reuters The growth of solar power installations in Europe slumped to just 4 this year after years of doubledigit increases, industry data showed on Tuesday, heightening concerns about the continent39;s clean energy transition.

The findings bode ill for the European Union39;s plans to rapidly expand its use of renewable energy a central pillar of the bloc39;s efforts to fight climate change and end its reliance on Russian fossil fuels.

The amount of solar energy installed in the EU had jumped by more than 40 yearonyear in both 2021 and 2022, and by more than 50 in 2023, industry association SolarPower Europe said.

This year, 65.5 gigawatts GW of solar was installed, a record high amount, but just 4 more than what was installed in 2023.

The growth is substantially slowing down, SolarPower Europe CEO Walburga Hemetsberger told Reuters.

The EU needs to install 70GW of new capacity each year to meet its 2030 green goals.

The group scaled back its growth forecasts as a result of this year39;s slowdown. Its central outlook still expects Europe to have 816GW of installed solar capacity by 2030 enough to meet Europe39;s green goals, and a jump from 338GW today.

But for the first time, the group39;s low outlook would now see Europe miss its targets to expand renewable energy.

The slowdown reflects the fact that many of Europe39;s power grids have not been upgraded to handle a bigger share of renewable energy. Solar projects often have to wait years to…