According to market analyst GlobalData, the global installed photovoltaic capacity will more than triple from 135 GW in 2013 to 414 GW in 2020.

In their latest study “Solar PV Module Value Chain – Market Size, Average Price, Market Share and Key Country Analysis to 2020”, GlobalData explains that there will be new big players on the photovoltaic market, such as South and Central America, the Asia-Pacific region, the Middle East and Africa. These will develop into major markets because there is an increasing focus on renewable energies to become independent from fossil fuels while spurring economic growth.

Swati Singh, a GlobalData analyst specialised on power, said that the Asia-Pacific region was a leading area for solar energy systems production und substantial photovoltaic installations – not least because of Japan, China and Taiwan being three of the largest solar cell manufacturers worldwide. “Governments in the region are promoting solar module manufacturing through various long-term policies, financial incentives, subsidies and tax benefits. This strong commitment to solar energy development has led to numerous research and development initiatives and increased solar module production and installations, which will drive future market growth”, Singh said.

In 2013, China, India and Japan accounted for most of the world’s annual installations. China alone added 12 GW of solar installations, which was nearly a third of the global new installations of 37 GW.

Singh explains why the “traditional” solar markets are being outpaced by others: “Prior to 2013, most solar PV installations were in Europe, with Italy, Germany, Spain and France accounting for the majority of global annual installations in 2012. Reduced solar PV module prices, combined with European countries’ feed-in tariff (FiT) subsidies, have supported the widespread growth of small-scale distributed capacity there. However, GlobalData believes that these tariffs are likely to become less generous in subsequent years, with the reduction or removal of incentives having already been proposed and implemented in some of the region’s countries.”

That is why GlobalData thinks it possible for global cumulative PV installations to reach 413.98 GW in 2020, effectively more than tripling the installed amount of 2013 (135.66 GW).

Tanja Peschel