The solar PV market is growing fast, and especially so in the leading solar PV countries. The top 5 solar countries will account for nearly 80% of the global solar PV market in the second half of 2014. However, if you look a bit closer, the details indicate sharp differences within the top 5.
Chinese market share and Japanese market share have surged in recent quarters. The US has been rather stable. The UK has grown a bit. And Germany has fallen a great deal.
In the second half of 2014, Solarbuzz projects that the US market and the Chinese market will together account for 54% of the global market. Strong growth has occurred within the Japanese market during the past few years thanks to its feed-in tariffs, and it is projected to be right behind the US. That market, interestingly, finds more remarkable peaks in the first quarter of each calendar year than in the latter part of the year. This is opposite the situation in China and the US. (The UK also shares Japan’s atypical growth pattern, but most of the world sees its peak in Q4.)
China, Japan, the US, and the UK are the ones to watch, according to Solarbuzz. They lead global demand now that leading European markets such as Germany and Italy are slowing down. Thus, these top four overshadow the others.
With nearly 80% of the world market going to the top five, this would set a record high in terms of market solidification. Companies seeking to compete on the global stage need to focus on size and interrelationships in these markets.
In another receent NPD Solarbuzz report, it was projected that the world would get up to 500 gigawatts (GW) of solar PV power capacity by 2018. The Middle East and Africa (MEA) are determined to succeed in this market as well, and they should be seeing strong growth in the coming years as well according to yet another Solarbuzz report. See our coverage of those below.
The Analyst Blog has more details about the latest report from Solarbuzzz if you want more of an inside look. And, of course, you could also go straight to the report linked above.
