The rapidly increasing use of renewable energy systems for commercial and residential applications coupled with low costs and efficiency of these systems are the major factors driving the global solar PV market. Furthermore, the rising cost of electricity in various countries is also a factor propelling the solar PV market. Solar PV is a technology which consists PV modules made up of semiconductor materials. These semiconductors absorb the heat from solar rays and converts it into electric current. The solar PV technology is one of the fastest growing technology of renewable energy source. It is expected that the solar PV market attribute a double digit CAGR over the forecast period. The reduced cost of PV module globally is a direct consequence of the rise in the PV demand and production.
The global solar PV market is segmented on the basis of application into utility application, residential application and commercial application. The residential applications generally composed of roof top solar PV assembly. The solar PV in commercial and non residential application are installed in the areas which are exposed to the sun so that the power generated can be used during peak hours. The utility scale solar PV are also used to generate power that is fed into the grid system so that it can be transmitted additionally to the conventional power source. As of 2013, the utility scale application attributed the largest share in the market. The key reason for the growth of this segment is the regulatory support delivered by the government in the countries such as China and India. As of 2012, the residential segment for installation of PV is accounted for approximately one fourth of the PV installed globally. This segment is also expected to witness lucrative growth over the forecast period due to the rising electricity costs.
The overall solar PV market on the basis of regions is segmented into North America, Asia Pacific, Europe and RoW. As of 2012, Europe attributed the largest share in the market owing to the high use of renewable energy sources in this region. Asia Pacific is expected to gain the largest market share in terms of revenue due to the rapid industrialization in this region. The prices of PV modules are constantly decreasing in various countries such as India, Australia and Japan. It is the factor expected to propel the growth of the solar PV market in this region over the forecast period. North America is considered as the third largest regional segment in the solar PV market owing to the large installation base of PV modules in this region.
Some of the key players in the global solar PV market include First Solar, Sun Power, Sharp, Yingli Green Energy, Trina Solar, Canadian Solar and Suntech Power. The First Solar and Yingli Green Energy are the largest companies in the solar PV market and together covers over 10% of the market share. All these market players are creating competitive strategies such as collaborations, expansions and acquisitions to maintain a strong hold in the global solar PV market. Various countries lying in the Sunbelt such as the Middle East and Latin America are expected to witness lucrative growth rate in the global solar PV market. Large solar PV manufacturers such as Sun Power and First Solar have made collaborations for entering into the Chinese solar PV market. These are also the factors which are expected to further boost the solar PV market.
Research Support Specialist, USA