User:Rfassbind/Growth of photovoltaics (history)

Worldwide growth of photovoltaics has been fitting an exponential curve for more than two decades. During this period of time, photovoltaics (PV), also known as solar PV, has evolved from a pure niche market of small scale applications towards becoming a mainstream electricity source. When solar PV systems were first recognized as a promising renewable energy technology, programs, such as feed-in tariffs, were implemented by a number of governments in order to provide economic incentives for investments. For several years, growth was mainly driven by Japan and pioneering European countries. As a consequence, cost of solar declined significantly due to improvements in technology and economies of scale, even more so when production of solar cells and modules started to ramp up in China. Since then, deployment of photovoltaics is gaining momentum on a worldwide scale, particularly in Asia but also in North America and other regions, where solar PV is now increasingly competing with conventional energy sources as grid parity has already been reached in about 30 countries.

Projections for photovoltaic growth are difficult and burdened with many uncertainties. Official agencies, such as the International Energy Agency consistently increased their estimates over the years, but still fell short of actual deployment.

Historically, the United States had been the leader of installed photovoltaics for many years, and its total capacity amounted to 77 megawatts in 1996—more than any other country in the world at the time. Then, Japan stayed ahead as the world's leader of produced solar electricity until 2005, when Germany took the lead. The country is currently approaching the 40,000 megawatt mark. China is expected to continue its rapid growth and to triple its PV capacity to 70,000 megawatts by 2017. In 2015, China became world's largest producer of photovoltaic power. By the end of 2015, cumulative photovoltaic capacity reached at least 227 gigawatts (GW), sufficient to supply 1 percent of global electricity demands. Solar now contributes 8%, 7.4% percent and 7.1 percent to the respective annual domestic consumption in Italy, Greece and Germany. For 2016, worldwide deployment of up to 77 GW is being forecasted, and installed capacity is projected to more than double or even triple beyond 500 GW between now and 2020. By 2050, solar power is anticipated to become the world's largest source of electricity, with solar photovoltaics and concentrated solar power contributing 16 and 11 percent, respectively. This will require PV capacity to grow to 4,600 GW, of which more than half is forecasted to be deployed in China and India.

Forecast for 2016
In April 2016, Mercom Capital Group, forecasted global solar installations to reach 66.7 GW with China, the United States, Japan and India to make up the top four solar markets in 2016. However, in December 2016, Mercom increased their 2016 forecast to 76GW.

Market research firm IHS forecast in February global installations to reach 69 GW in 2016. Meanwhile, Greentech Media has a 2016 forecast of 64 GW. In December 2016, IHS updated their 2016 forecast to 77GW.

Forecast for 2015
In June 2015, SolarPower Europe (SPE) – the former European Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA) – released its new report, Global Market Outlook for Solar Power 2015–2019. The European PV organization expects global installations to grow between 41 GW and 60 GW, marked by their low and high scenario, respectively. A year before, the European lobby association estimated 2015 to grow by 35–53 GW.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) will still have to update its forecast in the course of 2015. This is expected to happen on 1 October 2015, when the Medium-Term Renewable Energy Market Report 2015 will be launched on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Istanbul, Turkey. In August 2014, IEA forecasted 38 GW in its baseline scenario for 2015. The IEA has been criticized for systematically underestimating the growth of photovoltaics in the past.

IHS Technology forecasts global solar PV installations to grow by 59 GW or 33% in 2015. The company also predicts an accelerated growth for concentrator photovoltaics, an increase in market-share of monocrystalline silicon technology over polycrystalline silicon, currently the leading semiconductor material used for solar cells (also see section Technologies), and that solar power in California will provide more than 10 percent of the state's annual power generation, higher than in Italy and Germany.

Deutsche Bank (DB) anticipates deployment to reach about 54 GW in 2015. An increase in investments and improvement of cost competitiveness is expected, while weaker oil prices are not seen to play a significant role for the solar sector. They find that grid parity has arrived in 30 countries around the world (compared to 19 markets the year before ), as unsubsidized rooftop solar costs $0.08–$0.13 per kilowatt-hour, and is now below the retail prices of electricity in these markets. DB also estimates current installation cost to range from $1.00/W for utility-scale systems in China to $2.90/W for U.S. residential rooftop systems.

For 2015, Mercom Capital (MC) predicts global installation to amount to 57.8 GW (up from 54.5 GW predicted a few months earlier ), while Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) foresees solar PV to add more than 55 GW. The 10 Predictions For Clean Energy In 2015 by Michael Liebreich mentions the spread of PV to more and more localities in Africa, the trend of imposing taxes on rooftop systems, and the growing confidence among investors that solar is indeed a cheap source of power. In June 2015, Greentech Media (GTM) Research estimated global PV installations at 55 GW for 2015 and notes that this corresponds to about half of the world's newly installed electricity generating capacity.

About 40 countries are expected to install more than 100 megawatts in 2015 (compared to 25 countries in 2014). In the United States, installations are predicted to grow by 7.9 GW (SEIA ) to 9.4 GW, up by about 30–45% over the record-year of 2014. Both, the United Kingdom (2.9–3.5 GW) and Japan (9–10.4 GW) are being forecasted to set new records in 2015. After three years of decline, installations in Europe are expected to grow again to 9.4 GW, up 19% over 2014. The Chinese government set its own 2015 solar target to 17.8 GW, much higher than its original 2014 target it ultimately missed to achieve. India is expected to install more than 2 GW, a tripling over the previous year. A return of deployment in the gigawatt-scale is predicted for France, and record installations of 1.1 GW are expected for Thailand, while deployment in Australia and Germany would remain unchanged. Latin America is forecasted to install 2.2 GW in 2015, with a significant contribution from the Central American region for the first time, while Chile and Mexico are expected to double and triple their installations, respectively. The projected top five Latin American installers of 2015 are Chile (1 GW), Honduras (460 MW), Mexico (195 MW), Guatemala (98 MW) and Panama (62 MW). Rapid growth of solar PV is also expected to occur in Jordan, Pakistan and the Philippines.

Global short-term forecast (2020)
There are a number of short and medium term forecasts published by several organizations and market research companies. In addition, the International Energy Agency (IEA) and Solar Power Europe (SPE, the former EPIA) produce more than one scenario each. The summary table shows the different forecasts for global PV capacity by 2020. Projections are listed by ascending cumulative capacity. The table also shows the capacity that has to be installed from 2015–2020 and the average annual installation required to meet the projection. Conservative scenarios forecast capacity to reach 400 or more gigawatts, assuming declining annual installations from current levels, while more optimistic scenarios project cumulative capacity to grow beyond 500 GW. Only the most optimistic projections around 600 GW foresee annual installations to grow above 10 percent (p.a) in the near future.

The European Photovoltaic Industry Association expects the fastest PV growth to continue in China, South-East Asia, Latin America, the Middle-East, North Africa, and India. By 2019, worldwide capacity is projected to reach between 396 GW (low scenario) and 540 GW (high scenario). This corresponds to a more than doubling and tripling of installed capacity within five years, respectively.

Consulting firm Frost & Sullivan projects global PV capacity to increase to 446 GW by 2020, with China, India and North America being the fastest growing regions, while Europe is expected to double its solar capacity from current levels. Grand View Research, a market research and consulting firm, headquartered in San Francisco, published its solar PV forecast report in March 2015. The large PV potential in countries such as Brazil, Chile and Saudi Arabia has not expanded as expected and is supposed to be explored over the next six years. In addition, China's increase of manufacturing capacity is expected to further lowering global market prices. The consulting firm projects worldwide cumulative deployment to reach about 490 GW by 2020.

The PV Market Alliance (PVMA), a recently founded consortium of several research bodies, sees global PV capacity to reach 444–630 GW by 2020. In its low scenario, annual installations are projected to grow from 40 to 50 gigawatts by the end of the decade, while its high scenario forecasts deployment to increase from 60 to 90 GW during the next five years. The medium scenario therefore expects annual PV installations to grow from 50 GW to 70 GW and to reach 536 GW by 2020. PVMA's figures are in line with those published earlier by Solar Power Europe. In June 2015, Greentech Media (GTM) Research released its Global PV Demand Outlook for 2020. The company projects annual installations to increase from 40 GW to 135 GW and global cumulative capacity to reach almost 700 GW by 2020. GTM's outlook is the most aggressive of all forecasts to date, with projected deployment of 518 GW between 2015 and 2020, or more than twice as much as IEA's 225 GW baseline case scenario, published ten months earlier.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) sees overall stagnating annual installations in the range of 36–39 GW until 2020, when global capacity will reach 403 GW, according to the highlighted baseline case scenario of the Medium Term Renewable Energy Market 2014 report. Paradoxically, since the report's 2013-edition, projected cumulative for 2018 has increased by 6% from 308 GW to 326 GW, while the corresponding annual deployment decreased. This is due to the fact that the International Energy Agency adjusted annual installations upward on the near-end – in order to meet actual deployment, while reducing estimates on the far-end. The result is a flat curve that stays below 40 GW until 2020 (see table). For 2017, the projected low of 36 GW concurs with the scheduled expiration of the solar investment tax credit (ITC) in the U.S. and the expected end of the solar boom in Japan. IEA's projected annual installation of less than 40 GW also leads to a negative growth rate, since expectations for 2015 are much higher (see Forecast for 2015). Such a decline, however, is unprecedented and has never been observed in the recorded history of solar PV deployment. This scenario makes IEA's baseline case the most conservative of all projections. In the less featured enhanced high case scenario, IEA estimates that "solar PV could reach a cumulative 465 GW to 515 GW in 2020" and that "solar PV capacity could top 500 GW globally in 2020".

By 2020, IEA's Technology Roadmap: Solar Photovoltaic Energy report expects China to account for over 110 GW of solar PV, while Japan and Germany would each reach around 50 GW. The United States would rank fourth at over 40 GW, followed by Italy and India with 25 GW and 15 GW. The United Kingdom, France and Australia, would have installed capacities of close to 10 GW each. IEA released this outlook in September 2014 (see section below for more detail on the report). Two months later, however, India announced its intention to install 100 GW of solar PV by 2022, and another six months later, SEIA forecasted that the United States would reach 40 GW of cumulative PV capacity already by the end of 2016. Furthermore, in July 2015, the UK was forecast to reach 10 GW by early 2016. IEA will release its next roadmap report on solar PV in 2018.

Global long-term forecast (2050)
In 2014, the International Energy Agency (IEA) released its latest edition of the Technology Roadmap: Solar Photovoltaic Energy report, calling for clear, credible and consistent signals from policy makers. The IEA also acknowledged to have previously underestimated PV deployment and reassessed its short-term and long-term goals.

IEA's long-term scenario for 2050 describes worldwide solar photovoltaics (PV) and concentrated solar thermal (CSP) capacity to reach 4,600 GW and 1,000 GW, respectively. In order to achieve IEA's projection, PV deployment of 124 GW and investments of $225 billion are required annually. This is about three and two times of current levels, respectively. By 2050, levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) generated by solar PV would cost between US 4¢ and 16¢ per kilowatt-hour (kWh), or by segment and on average, 5.6¢ per kWh for utility-scale power plants (range of 4¢ to 9.7¢), and 7.8¢ per kWh for solar rooftop systems (range of 4.9¢ to 15.9¢) These estimates are based on a weighted average cost of capital (WACC) of 8%. The report notes that when the WACC exceeds 9%, over half the LCOE of PV is made of financial expenditures, and that more optimistic assumptions of a lower WACC would therefore significantly reduce the LCOE of solar PV in the future. The IEA also emphasizes that these new figures are not projections but rather scenarios they believe would occur if underlying economic, regulatory and political conditions played out.

In 2015, Fraunhofer ISE did a study commissioned by German renewable think tank Agora Energiewende and concluded that most scenarios fundamentally underestimate the role of solar power in future energy systems. Fraunhofer's study (see summary of its conclusions below) differs significantly form IEA's roadmap report on solar PV technology despite being published only a few months apart. The report foresees worldwide installed PV capacity to reach as much as 30,700 GW by 2050. By then, Fraunhofer expects LCOE for utility-scale solar farms to reach €0.02 to €0.04 per kilowatt-hour, or about half of what the International Energy Agency has been projecting (4¢ to 9.7¢). Turnkey system costs would decrease by more than 50% to €436/kWp from currently €995/kWp. This is also noteworthy, as IEA's roadmap published significantly higher estimates of $1,400 to $3,300 per kWp for eight major markets around the world (see table Typical PV system prices in 2013 below). However, the study agrees with IEA's roadmap report by emphasizing the importance of the cost of capital (WACC), which strongly depends on regulatory regimes and may even outweigh local advantages of higher solar insolation. In the study, a WACC of 5%, 7.5% and 10% is used to calculate the projected levelized cost of electricity for utility-scale solar PV in 18 different markets worldwide.

Regional forecasts

 * China


 * In October 2015, China's National Energy Administration (NDRC) set an ambitious 23.1 GW target for 2015, upgrading its previous target of 17.8 GW from March 2015, which was already more than the entire global PV capacity installed in 2010. With this revised target, China will have surpassed Germany's total capacity of 40 GW by the end of the year and become the world's largest overall producer of photovoltaic power.


 * As of October 2015, China plans to install 150 GW of solar power by 2020, an increase of 50 GW compared to the 2020-target announced in October 2014, when China planned to install 100 GW of solar power—along with 200 GW of wind, 350 GW of hydro and 58 GW of nuclear power.


 * Overall, China has consistently increased its annual and short term targets. However estimates, targets and actual deployment have differed substantially in the past: in 2013 and 2014, China was expected to continue to install 10 GW per year. In February 2014, China's NDRC upgraded its 2014 target from 10 GW to 14 GW (later adjusted to 13 GW ) and ended up installing an estimated 10.6 GW due to shortcomings in the distributed PV sector.


 * India
 * By 2016, India plans to have constructed the world’s largest solar farm with a capacity of 750 MW. The country plans to install 100 GW capacity of solar power by 2022, a five-time increase from a previous target. However, India's solar PV deployment was below expectation and actually declined from 1,115 MW in 2013 to 616 MW in 2014, which contrasts with the country’s positive policy tone towards solar PV. In 2015, record installations are 3018 MW against expectation of 2 GW. As of July 13, 2015, total commissioned capacity in India surpassed 4 GW and stands at 4,096 MW, with the state Rajasthan and Gujarat taking the lead with 1,164 MW and 1,000 MW, respectively.


 * Japan
 * For 2014, installations in Japan reached an all time record level of 9.7 GW, compared to 6.9 GW in 2013. By the end of 2014, Japan's installed PV capacity of 23.3 GW can now contribute about 2.5% to the overall domestic electricity demand. In 2014, Japan also overtook Italy (18.5 GW) as the world's third largest PV nation in terms of cumulative capacity. IHS forecasts that Japan will retain its position as the world's second largest solar market for new installations and grow by 4%, adding another 10.4 GW in 2015.


 * United States
 * In March 2015, SEIA, the Solar Energy Industries Association and GTM Research, released their U.S. estimate for 2014. In the United States, a total of 6.2 gigawatts had been installed, up 30 percent over 2013 (vs. previous projection of 6.5 GW in September 2014). This brings the country’s cumulative PV total to 18.3 GW. However, according to IHS, U.S. deployment amounted to 7 GW in 2014, or 800 MW higher than SEIA reported. In June 2014 Barclays downgraded bonds of U.S. utility companies. Barclays expects more competition by a growing self-consumption due to a combination of decentralized PV-systems and residential electricity storage. This could fundamentally change the utility's business model and transform the system over the next ten years, as prices for these systems are predicted to fall. For 2015, annual PV installations are predicted to increase to 8.1 GW (cumulative of 26.4 GW) by the end of the year. Other sources see U.S. deployment to increase by approximately 9 GW in 2015, before peaking in 2016. In May 2015, SEIA predicted U.S. PV-market to grow by 25% to 50% in 2016, with a cumulative PV capactiy of 40 GW by the end of 2016. Roughly, this translates into 13 GW of added capacity in 2016.


 * Europe


 * By 2020, the European Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA) expects PV capacity to pass 150 GW. It finds the EC-supervised national action plans for renewables (NREAP) turned out to be too conservative, as the goal of 84 GW of solar PV by 2020 had already been surpassed in 2014 (prelim. figures account for close to 88 GW by the end of 2014). For 2030, EPIA originally predicted solar PV to reach between 330 and 500 GW, supplying 10 to 15 percent of Europe's electricity demand. However, recent reassessments are more pessimistic and point to a 7 to 11 percent share, if no major policy changes are undertaken.


 * In 2014, overall European markets continued to decline despite strong growth in some countries. These countries, with their percentage-increase of total capacity, were, the United Kingdom (+80%), the Netherlands (+54%), Switzerland (+42%), Austria (+22%) and France (+20%), which rebounced significantly in terms of annual installations from 643 MW in 2013 to 927 MW in 2014. In most countries, however, deployment underperformed or, in some cases, growth of cumulative capacity even fell below the one percent mark. In descending percentage-order, cumulative installations only grew by 6.0% in Romania (69 MW), 5.2% in Germany (1,900 MW), 2.1% in Italy (385 MW), 2.1% in Belgium (65 MW), 0.4% in Spain (22 MW), 0.2% in Bulgaria (1.6 MW), 0.08% in Slovakia (0.4 MW), 0.06% in Greece (16 MW), and 0.01% in the Czech Republic (1.7 MW).


 * The United Kingdom had the strongest percentage growth and became the fourth largest PV installer worldwide after China, Japan and the United States. In 2014, the country installed more than 2.2 GW (vs. 1.1 GW in 2013) and cumulative installation increased by 80% to 5.1 GW by the end of the year. The booming utility-scale installations were partially explained by the upcoming closure of the appealing renewable obligation certificates (ROC) scheme in March 2015. This may also bring another record deployment in 2015, as IHS forecasts 3.5 GW of installations for the year.


 * In Germany and Italy, the rate of new installations continued to decline in 2014 and is expected to remain unchanged or even decline to 1.3 GW for 2015. In 2014, Germany installed 1,926 MW, down 36 percent from 3,300 MW deployed in 2013. During the period of 2010–2012, the country was the world's leader installing more than 7 GW annually. New cumulative capacity of 38.2 GW corresponds to 475 watts per inhabitant. Italy installed 385 MW, much less than previously expected and down from 1.5 GW deployed in 2013. Overall capacity of 18.5 GW translates into 304 watts per inhabitant. Solar PV now contributes significantly to domestic net-electricity consumption in Italy (7.9%), Greece (7.6%) and Germany (7.0%). {{rp|15}

History of deployment
Deployment figures on a global, regional and nationwide scale are well documented since the early 1990s. While worldwide photovoltaic capacity has been growing continuously, deployment figures by country are much more dynamic, as they depend strongly on national policies. A number of organizations release comprehensive reports on PV deployment on a yearly basis. They include annual and cumulative deployed PV capacity, typically given in watt-peak, a break-down by markets, as well as in-depth analysis and forecasts about future trends.

Worldwide annual deployment
Due to the exponential nature of PV deployment, about 83 percent of the overall capacity has been installed during the last five years from 2011 to 2015 (see pie-chart; projected figure for 2015). Since the 1990s, and except for 2012, each year has been a record-breaking year in terms of newly installed PV capacity.

Worldwide cumulative


Worldwide growth of solar PV capacity has been fitting an exponential curve since 1992. Tables below show global cumulative nominal capacity by the end of each year in megawatts, and the year-to-year increase in percent. In 2014, global capacity is expected to grow by 33 percent from 138,856 to 185,000 MW. This corresponds to an exponential growth rate of 29 percent or about 2.4 years for current worldwide PV capacity to double. Exponential growth rate: P(t) = P0ert, where P0 is 139 GW, growth-rate r 0.29 (results in doubling time t of 2.4 years).

The following table contains data from four different sources. For 1992–1995: compiled figures of 16 main markets (see section All time PV installations by country). For 1996–1999: BP-Statistical Review of world energy (Historical Data Workbook) for 2000–2013: EPIA Global Outlook on Photovoltaics Report and for 2014, preliminary figures are based on IEA-PVPS' snapshot report


 * Legend:
 * Worldwide, cumulative nameplate capacity in megawatt-peak MWp, (re-)calculated in DC power output.
 * annual increase of cumulative worldwide PV nameplate capacity in percent.
 * figures of 16 main markets, including Australia, Canada, Japan, Korea, Mexico, European countries, and the United States.

Deployment reports
Most PV deployment figures in this article are provided by the European Photovoltaic Industry Association in the "Global Outlook for Photovoltaics" report, the Observatoire des énergies renouvelables or EurObserv'ER's "Photovoltaic Barometer" report, and the IEA-PVPS (photovoltaic power systems) "Snapshot" and "Trends" report.




 * EPIA


 * 2014 – Global Market Outlook for Photovoltaics 2014–2018
 * 2013 – Global Market Outlook for Photovoltaics 2013–2017
 * 2012 – Global Market Outlook for Photovoltaics until 2016
 * 2011 – Global Market Outlook for Photovoltaics until 2015
 * 2010 – Global Market Outlook for Photovoltaics until 2014
 * 2009 – Global Market Outlook for Photovoltaics until 2013
 * 2008 – Global Market Outlook for Photovoltaics until 2012


 * The European Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA) represents members of the entire PV industry from silicon producers to cells and module manufactures and PV systems installers to PV electricity generation as well as marketing and sales. EPIA releases its annual Global Market Outlook for Photovoltaics report in May/June.


 * PV-Barometer


 * 2015 – figures for year 2013 and 2014
 * 2014 – figures for year 2012 and 2013
 * 2013 – figures for year 2011 and 2012
 * 2012 – figures for year 2010 and 2011
 * 2011 – figures for year 2009 and 2010
 * 2010 – figures for year 2008 and 2009


 * EUROBSER'VER (Observatoire des énergies renouvelables) was set up in 1980, and is composed of engineers and experts releasing the Photovoltaic Barometer report containing early, year-end PV deployment figures for the 28 member states of the European Union. Eurobserver works closely together with several French ministries and is co-founded by the European Commission's IEE programm.


 * IEA-PVPS


 * 2015 – Snapshot of Global PV 1992-2014
 * 2014 – Trends 2014 in Photovoltaic Applications – Survey report of selected IEA countries between 1992 and 2013
 * 2014 – Snapshot of Global PV 1992-2013
 * 2014 – Trends 2013 in Photovoltaic Applications – Survey report of selected IEA countries between 1992 and 2012
 * 2013 – Snapshot of Global PV 1992-2012
 * 2011 – Trends in Photovoltaic Applications – Survey report of selected IEA countries between 1992 and 2010
 * 2010 – Trends in Photovoltaic Applications – Survey report of selected IEA countries between 1992 and 2009
 * 2009 – Trends in Photovoltaic Applications – Survey report of selected IEA countries between 1992 and 2008
 * 2007 – Trends in Photovoltaic Applications – Survey report of selected IEA countries between 1992 and 2006


 * The IEA Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme (PVPS) is one of the collaborative R&D agreements established within the IEA and, since its establishment in 1993, the PVPS participants have been conducting a variety of joint projects in the application of photovoltaic conversion of solar energy into electricity. Its annual "Snapshot" report is released in early April and provides the first and detailed figures of worldwide PV-deployment of the previous year. An overview of all international statistics PDF reports since 1995 can be found on IEA-PVPS' Statistic Reports website.

Deployment by country



 * 2015


 * See section Forecast for projected photovoltaic deployment in 2015


 * 2014


 * 2013


 * Worldwide

In 2013, worldwide deployment of solar PV amounted to almost 40 GW (39,953 MW)—an increase of about 35 percent over the previous year. Cumulated capacity increased by 38 percent to more than 139 GW. This is sufficient to generate at least 160 terawatt-hours (TWh) or 0.85 percent of the world's total electricity consumption of 18,400 TWh.

An uncertainty in Chinese deployment was the reason for a significant discrepancy between EPIA's outlook and IEA's Trends reports. EPIA did not take 1.1 GW of additional Chinese deployment into account, since at the time it was unsure whether these installations were connected to the grid. In IEA's final Trends report, the confirmed figures not only raised domestic Chinese deployment from 11.8 GW to 12.92 GW, but also contributed to increase global figures to almost 40 GW.


 * Regions

In 2013, Asia has been the fastest growing region, with China and Japan accounting for 49% of worldwide deployment. About a quarter has been installed in Europe (10,975 MW). The remaining quarter of the 38,400 MW deployed in 2013 is split between North America and other countries.

Europe is still the most developed region with a cumulative capacity of 81.5 GW, about 59 percent of the global total, followed by the Asia-Pacific region (APAC), including countries such as Japan, India and Australia with 22 GW or about 16 percent of worldwide cumulative capacity (due to its significance, China is excluded from the APAC region in all PV statistics and listed separately). European solar PV now covers 3 percent of the electricity demand and 6 percent of the peak electricity demand. However, deployment in Europe has slowed down by half compared to the record year of 2011, and will most likely continue to decrease. This is mainly due to the strong decline of new installations in Germany and Italy.

Cumulative capacity in the MEA (Middle East and Africa) region and ROW (rest of the world) accounted for less than 3 GW or about 2.2% of the global total. A great untapped potential remains for many of these countries, especially in the Sunbelt.


 * Countries

In 2013, the world's top installer were China (+12.92 GW), followed by Japan (+6.97 GW) and the United States (+4.75 GW), while Germany remained the world's largest overall producer of power from solar PV, with a total capacity around 36 GW and contributing 5.7% to its net electricity consumption. Italy met more than 7% of its electricity demands with solar PV, thus leading the world in that respect.

The top ten leading countries in terms of deployed and overall PV-capacity are shown above. Other mentionable PV deployments above the 100-megawatt mark included France (643 MW), Canada (445 MW), South Korea (445 MW), Thailand (437 MW), The Netherlands (360 MW), Switzerland (319 MW), Ukraine (290 MW), Austria (263 MW), Israel (244 MW), Belgium (237 MW), Taiwan (170 MW) Denmark (156 MW) and Spain (116 MW).

In 2013, Europe added 11 gigawatts of new PV installation (including non-EU countries). It is still the most developed region with a cumulated total of 81.5 GW, about 59 percent of the worldwide installed capacity. Solar PV now covers 3 percent of the electricity demand and 6 percent of the peak electricity demand. However, European PV deployment has slowed down by half compared to the record year of 2011, and will most likely continue to decrease. This is mainly due to the strong decline of new installations in Germany and Italy.


 * 2012


 * 2011


 * 2010


 * 2009


 * 2008


 * 2007

Off grid refers to photovoltaics which are not grid connected. On grid means connected to the local electricity grid. Δ means the amount installed during the previous year. Σ means the total amount installed. Wp/capita refers to the ratio of total installed capacity divided by total population, or total installed Wp per person. Module price is average installed price, in Euros. kW·h/kWp·yr indicates the range of insolation to be expected. While National Report(s) may be cited as source(s) within an International Report, any contradictions in data are resolved by using only the most recent report's data. Exchange rates represent the 2006 annual average of daily rates (OECD Main Economic Indicators June 2007). Module Price: Lowest:2.5 EUR/Wp (2.83 USD/Wp ) in Germany 2003. Uncited insolation data is from maps dating 1991–1995.


 * 2006

Notes: While National Report(s) may be cited as source(s) within an International Report, any contradictions in data are resolved by using only the most recent report's data. Exchange rates represent the 2006 annual average of daily rates (OECD Main Economic Indicators June 2007) Module Price: Lowest:2.5 EUR/Wp (2.83 USD/Wp ) in Germany 2003. Uncited insolation data is lifted from maps dating 1991–1995.


 * 2005

Original source gives these individual numbers and totals them to 37,500 kW. The 2004 reported total was 30,700 kW. With new installations of 6,800 kW, this would give the reported 37,500 kW.


 * 2004