By Warwick Johnston, CEO, SunWiz
Europe's solar story is often told as if the continent were a single market moving in one direction, but the latest data shows that this assumption is no longer true. We have just completed our Worldwide Market Index for Distributed PV & Energy Storage Systems (ESS), and the results reveal a far more complex picture: Europe is now a patchwork of sharply different growth trajectories, technology choices and economic outcomes. Within that mosaic, Ireland stands out as one of the most compelling solar and battery markets in Europe right now.
Ireland's future potential for Solar and Battery Markets
A key finding from the index is that there is no longer a single "rising tide" lifting all European markets equally. Some countries' PV markets are still accelerating strongly, while others are flattening or even contracting after years of growth. While battery adoption is rising almost everywhere, it's progressing at wildly different speeds, and for very different reasons. The idea of a one-size-fits-all "Europe strategy" simply no longer holds.
Ireland is a textbook example of why this matters, with its standout success rooted in its on-the-ground reality.
Our data shows that Ireland is one of the few European markets where both PV and ESS uptake are growing rapidly at the same time, and crucially, across both residential and commercial segments. Many countries have strong PV but weak batteries, or healthy residential demand but stalled commercial activity. Ireland has momentum on all fronts.
Payback economics are a big part of the story. Ireland now has one of the fastest residential PV payback periods in Europe, and for commercial PV it is effectively the fastest in Europe. Falling system prices, high electricity costs and supportive policy settings have combined to create a compelling investment case. For households and businesses alike, solar has moved from "nice to have" to "financial common sense".
Battery economics are following close behind. Ireland's residential battery attachment rate is far higher than most European markets, even though Irish systems tend to install smaller battery capacities than in countries like Germany or Italy. This points to a market that is highly pragmatic: households are adopting batteries to optimise self-consumption and resilience, rather than oversizing systems for theoretical maximums. It is a distinctly Irish fingerprint, and one that we've seen some manufacturers ignore at their peril.
Our index also highlights how product characteristics vary country by country. Panel wattages, inverter power classes, hybrid inverter penetration, ESS sizing and phase configurations all vary in ways that reflect local grid constraints, housing stock and consumer motivation. In Ireland's case, the data shows a strong tilt toward 5kW single-phase hybrid inverters, with a small number of leading brands capturing a dominant share of the market. This level of concentration has implications for supply chains, pricing power and installer training as the market matures.
Importantly, Ireland is ending the year on a high note. PV volumes remain strong, and residential ESS installations continue to climb steadily, even as some other European markets cool. That combination is rare and places Ireland firmly in the top tier of European opportunities for manufacturers and distributors planning for 2025–26.
The broader takeaway from the Worldwide Market Index is clear: Europe can no longer be analysed, or served, as a single market. Policy settings, grid rules, energy prices and household motivations combine differently everywhere, producing distinct national outcomes. Ireland's mix has aligned unusually well, creating a market that is simultaneously growing, profitable and technologically distinctive.
Ireland's solar and battery sector is no longer just catching up. It is setting its own pace, and in several respects, setting the benchmark for Europe.
Warwick Johnston is the CEO and Found...