World PV capacity passes 100 GW mark

14 February 2013


More than 30 GW of solar photovoltaic capacity was connected to the electricity grid in 2013, bringing the total to just over 101 GW, according to new market figures from the European Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA).

The passing of the 100 GW mark occurred in yet another year of strong global PV development, with an estimated 30 GW made operational in 2012 - roughly the same as the record-setting level of 2011. These results are preliminary, and the 30 GW figure could be increased by an additional 1 or 2 GW when final numbers come in. Final results for the year will be published in May, in EPIA's annual "Global Market Outlook for Photovoltaics 2013-2017."

"No one would have predicted even 10 years ago that we would see more than 100 GW of solar photovoltaic capacity in the world by 2012," said EPIA president Winfried Hoffmann. "The photovoltaic industry clearly faces challenges but the results of 2012 show there is a strong global market for our technology. Even in tough economic times and despite growing regulatory uncertainty, we have nearly managed to repeat the record year of 2011."

But the year also showed an important shift towards a more global PV market, with 13 GW of PV installations occurring outside Europe (compared to just under 8 GW in 2011) and nearly 17 GW in Europe (compared to nearly 23 GW in 2011). The top three European PV markets in 2012 were Germany (with 7.6 GW), Italy (3.3 GW) and France (1.2 GW). The top three non-European markets were China (with at least 3.5 GW and possibly as much as 4.5 GW), the USA (3.2 GW) and Japan (2.5 GW).



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