FRANKFURT, Germany -- 2016 was another record year for solar power.

The world last year installed 49.6% more solar power capacity, or 76.6 gigawatts, than it did the previous year, according to SolarPower Europe.

It was a record leap for the second straight year, the European industry association said.

China accounted for 45% of the new installations, adding 34.5GW worth of the capacity.

During the year, Asia-Pacific overtook Europe as the region with the most cumulative solar capacity.

China ranked first in newly installed solar capacity, adding 128% more than it did the previous year. In the U.S., installations were up 97% from 2015, to 14.8GW. Third-ranked Japan installed 22% less capacity, adding 8.6GW to its grid, as large projects were hit with delays in the approval process.

India now has the world's fourth largest installed capacity, after adding 125% more to its grid.

Globally, the world last year was able to produce 306.5GW worth of electricity from solar plants -- a fortysixfold increase from a decade earlier.

China accounted for 25.3% of that total, Japan came in at 14% and the U.S. at 13.8%. Germany had been No. 2 on the 2015 list but fell to No. 4 at 13.4% last year. This indicates that the main solar power market is shifting from Europe to Asia.

This year, the association expects the global solar power market to grow 5%, adding 80.5GW worth of capacity. By the end of 2021, the association expects solar power capacity to reach 700GW.