The surge in fuel prices driven by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz following the outbreak of the Iran war on February 28 is producing a rapid, war-induced pivot toward rooftop solar across Asia, particularly in nations heavily dependent on imported oil and liquefied natural gas. In the Philippines — a country now operating under a national energy emergency — a survey of 20 local solar companies conducted by the nonprofit New Energy Nexus found a 70% increase in weekly installations and a more than six-fold rise in customer inquiries since the conflict began.
“This crisis is a driving force for solar,” said Brenda Valerio, representing New Energy Nexus, which conducted the survey. “People want solar and people want solar now.”
Oil and gas price spikes during the first 60 days of the war cost Filipino consumers, businesses and public institutions more than $600 million, according to an estimate by the climate nonprofit 350.org. The Philippine government has responded by shortening the official workweek to four days and ordering agencies to keep air conditioning no lower than 24 degrees Celsius (75 degrees Fahrenheit). Local airlines are weighing fuel rationing, and public transport workers are receiving emergency cash handouts.
For households, the shock has been immediate. “When we got our energy bill after the Iran war broke out, we were very shocked. It was a significant increase,” said Manila resident Jaime Quemado, who recently purchased a rooftop solar system. Quemado cited growing concerns about potential power outages as a further reason for seeking “an alternative energy source — solar, which is very abundant here in the Philippines.”
Customer inquiries to solar installers climbed from roughly 115 in February, before the war, to more than 450 by mid-April, the New Energy Nexus survey found. On two blisteringly hot days in the capital, installers from the firm EcoSolutions mounted an 18-kilowatt rooftop system that included 28 panels from the major Chinese manufacturer LONGi and four batteries from the Suzhou-based company Dyness.
The war has “helped the solar industry really get its footing,” said EcoSolutions president Richmond Reyes. Joel Remegio of the Association of Solar Installers of the Philippines described the energy crisis as a “game changer” for the country’s nascent solar sector. Marissa Cerezo of the Department of Energy’s Renewable Energy Management Bureau called the technology “accessible to all of us” and said it “gives us the power to choose them.”
Across Southeast Asia, governments are responding with more ambitious policies. Indonesia has set a target of 100 gigawatts of rooftop solar by 2034, a sharp increase from the current installed base of 1.3 gigawatts. Vietnam aims to install rooftop solar on at least 10% of public offices and homes by 2030, while Thailand is considering policies to increase the amount of surplus solar energy the national grid will purchase. “It totally makes sense for policymakers to take another look at rooftop solar and see ways that they can save costs,” said Yu Sun Chin of the research group Zero Carbon Analytics.
Online marketplaces and utility companies in the United States and across Europe have also recorded jumps in solar sales and inquiries since the Iran war began. “Solar is definitely one of the easiest things people can do” to cut monthly electricity bills, said Jan Rosenow, a professor of energy and climate policy at Oxford University, who noted that rooftop solar’s affordability makes it more accessible than buying an electric vehicle or installing a heat pump.
The surge in global demand is funneling through China’s dominant clean-technology manufacturing base. Ember, an energy think tank, reported that China exported 68 gigawatts of clean-technology products in March — equivalent to Spain’s entire installed solar capacity and double the February figure. Exports to Africa rose 176% month-over-month to 10 gigawatts, with rapid growth in Nigeria, Kenya and Ethiopia. Shipments to other Asian nations doubled to 39 gigawatts, including major increases to India, Malaysia and Laos.
“China really is, by far, leading this race,” said Li Shuo, director of the Asia Society Policy Institute’s China Climate Hub, who characterized the renewable manufacturing sector as “a one-man show.” Li said Chinese companies had accumulated an oversupply of solar panels and related equipment before the war, leaving them “in a prime position to capitalize on current demand.”
Ramnath Iyer of the U.S.-based Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis said the speed of the transition will depend on whether world leaders “decide to go ahead with electrification and move away from fossil fuels.” Li of the China Climate Hub added that “the current situation in Iran will help China cement its dominance.”
Solar advocacy groups see the moment as an inflection point. Valerio urged the industry to “ride this wave and take advantage of this momentum.” The convergence of wartime energy insecurity, falling solar costs, and Chinese manufacturing scale is accelerating a shift that energy analysts say was already underway — but which the conflict has now compressed from years into months.