How many watts is one megawatt of solar energy? One megawatt (MW) of solar energy is equal to 1,000,000 watts, which is a standard unit of measurement for electrical power. Solar energy is harnessed from sunlight using photovoltaic cells, and when converted into electricity, one megawatt signifies. With approximately 266. 9 million average American homes. As solar becomes a more significant piece of the U. energy generation mix, it is important to understand just how many. A megawatt is 1,000,000 watts of power — a thousand times larger than a kilowatt. Megawatts are typically used to describe power capacities on large scales, such as those of nuclear power plants or the amount of energy required to power a city. The factors affecting the number of panels needed include panel size, efficiency, and sunlight availability. For example, using 200-watt solar panels, you would need around 5,000 panels to.