Italy connected 3.09 GW of new solar photovoltaic capacity and 1.35 GWh of electrochemical battery storage during the first half of 2026, according to an analysis by ITALIA SOLARE based on Terna’s Gaudì data.

As of June 30, the country had 2,255,654 operational solar installations with a combined capacity of 46.61 GW. A total of 89,173 new systems, representing 3,093 MW, were connected during the first six months of the year.

Italy’s electrochemical energy storage fleet, meanwhile, reached a cumulative capacity of 19.33 GWh and a total power rating of 7.98 GW across 943,797 installations. New connections during the first half of the year added 1.35 GWh, including 914 MWh paired with solar installations and 436 MWh from stand-alone projects.

Larger solar projects gain ground

The figures show that Italy’s solar market is becoming increasingly concentrated in medium-sized and large installations. Growth in the commercial and industrial and utility-scale segments offset the contraction in residential installations.

Italy connected 1.65 GW of new solar capacity in the second quarter, 15% more than the 1.44 GW registered between January and March. However, the number of newly connected installations fell by 31%, from 50,513 in the first quarter to 38,660 in the following three months.

The combination of higher capacity and fewer installations reflects an increase in the average size of newly connected projects.

Residential systems of up to 20 kW accounted for 556 MW and 80,685 installations during the first half of the year. Commercial and industrial projects ranging from 20 kW to 1 MW contributed 1.15 GW across 8,183 installations, while the utility-scale segment added 1.38 GW from 305 projects with capacities of at least 1 MW.

Compared with the first half of 2025, residential additions fell by 23%, from 725 MW to 556 MW. Commercial and industrial capacity increased by 22%, from 946 MW to 1.15 GW, while utility-scale additions also rose by 22%, from 1.14 GW to 1.38 GW.

Growth was recorded across all commercial and industrial size categories. Capacity from installations between 20 kW and 90 kW increased from 206 MW to 228 MW, while the 90 kW to 200 kW category expanded from 219 MW to 273 MW. Projects ranging from 200 kW to 1 MW rose from 521 MW to 652 MW.

Utility-scale installations between 1 MW and 10 MW increased from 610 MW to 731 MW, while projects exceeding 10 MW contributed 651 MW, compared with 528 MW in the first half of 2025.

Paolo Rocco Viscontini, president of ITALIA SOLARE, said the energy transition cannot depend on a single market segment. Large projects are needed to rapidly increase domestic electricity production, he said, but policies should also support household and business self-consumption, simplify permitting for rooftop installations and provide stable investment conditions.

Lombardy and Sicily lead solar additions

Lombardy recorded the largest amount of newly connected solar capacity in the first half of 2026, with 470 MW, narrowly ahead of Sicily’s 469 MW. Veneto followed with 306 MW, Emilia-Romagna with 305 MW, Piedmont with 286 MW, Apulia with 218 MW and Lazio with 215 MW.

Lombardy also led the country in the number of new installations, with 13,820 connections. Veneto registered 11,233, Emilia-Romagna 8,039 and Sicily 7,146.

On a per-capita basis, Sicily recorded the highest level of new solar capacity, at 98 W per resident, followed by Friuli-Venezia Giulia with 84 W, Marche with 71 W and Basilicata with 70 W.

Battery storage fleet exceeds 19 GWh

Of Italy’s cumulative storage capacity, 11.94 GWh is associated with solar installations and 7.34 GWh corresponds to stand-alone facilities. A further 57 MWh is paired with thermal power plants and 6 MWh with wind installations.

Italy connected 60,076 storage systems during the first half of 2026, representing 593 MW of power and 1.35 GWh of capacity.

Solar-paired batteries accounted for almost all new installations by number, with 60,068 systems providing 470 MW and 914 MWh. By comparison, only eight stand-alone storage projects were connected, but their combined contribution reached 123 MW and 436 MWh.

New capacity from solar-paired systems declined from 973 MWh in the first half of 2025 to 914 MWh in the same period of 2026. The slowdown became more pronounced during the second quarter, when Italy added 403 MWh and 221 MW across 25,098 solar-linked storage systems. Compared with the first quarter, capacity fell by 27%, power by 13% and the number of installations by 39%.

Small distributed batteries continued to dominate the solar-paired market. Systems between 6 kW and 20 kW accounted for 464 MWh of new capacity, while units of up to 6 kW contributed 187 MWh. Installations above 20 kW added a combined 263 MWh.

Fabio Zanellini, coordinator of ITALIA SOLARE’s energy storage working group, said distributed batteries paired with solar remain the market’s preferred storage configuration. He called for technical and economically sustainable measures to integrate this distributed capacity into the management of the power system, particularly during periods of excess electricity generation.

Among solar-paired systems, Lombardy led regional additions with 122 MWh, followed by Emilia-Romagna with 109 MWh, Sicily with 103 MWh and Veneto with 97 MWh. Lombardy also ranked first in power, with 66 MW, and in the number of newly connected units, with 8,818 systems.