Market Development

Photovoltaic World Market

Photovoltaic world market prognoses
yearly production:
1997/98: 100 MWp
2004: 1,000 MWp
2012: 10,000 MWp
2024: 100,000 MWp

 

Plugging into the Sun, Kickstarting the Solar Age In Crete
The first 5 Megawatts (MW) of a 50 MW solar power station
At 50 Megawatts, it is 15 times larger than any other single photovoltaic installation in the world and more than 50 per cent of the entire 1996 global sales of photovoltaics, the cells which convert solar energy to electricity.
48 Million solar cells will be used to provide 116 million kilowatt hours of electricity a year.
The cost of the 50MW will be 4.2 times less than the average global cost of grid-connected photovoltaics.
Building the equivalent of just eight more solar power plants like the Crete proposal would be enough to create a $27 billion worldwide market for photovoltaic technology.

 

Oil and Solar - Greenpeace international briefing
"Business as usual" market analysis forecasts (7) that global annual sales of 800-1,000 Megawatts by 2010, worth US $8-10 billion.
A recent industry conference sponsored by Shell and other companies predicted that due to "recent innovations in manufacturing techniques" the global market could be worth $18 billion by 2010 (8).
If world Governments take the threat of climate change more seriously, the global annual market could grow at a faster rate still - projections taking into account further action on climate change forecast an annual market five times business as usual by 2010, i.e. 4000MW per year.

 

Oil and Solar - Greenpeace international briefing - Solar Mass Productoin
A BP study (12) demonstrated last year that with an investment of US$550 million into a 500 Megawatt solar photovoltaic factory, the production costs of solar can be reduced by 80%.
The BP study shows that a large-scale factory can be built utilising existing technologies and equipment and would employ 3,000 people.
"The study has shown, subject to appropriate investment, that there are no barriers to achieving 500MWp per annum production of photovoltaic modules using crystalline silicon".
Commenting on the report, a senior industry analyst stated that 'at these costs solar will be fully economic throughout the world.(13)
Industry analysis shows that cost reduction on this scale would generate an annual global market of at least US$100 billion. (14)

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Solar energy, one of the key technologies for the future

UPVG

 

Britain Could Generate 50 Percent of Electricity from Renewables by 2025

Just as a policy review is underway in the United Kingdom for ways to deliver 10 percent of the country’s electricity demand from renewable sources by 2010, a government study leaked to New Scientist magazine says energy from the sun, wind, waves, and other green sources could generate half of Britain’s electricity by 2025.

In an August issue, the magazine said Britain’s Department of Trade and Industry, the same government agency developing the renewable energy plan for the year 2010, has completed a study that predicts that power from renewable energy could rise from 32 terawatt-hours in 1997 to 180 terawatt-hours in 2025. Britain’s total electricity consumption last year was 345 terawatt-hours.

The prediction is the most optimistic yet from any [UK] government on the future of Britain’s ‘green energy,’” said New Scientist.

Speaking at the opening of the large photovoltaic installation at Ford’s Bridgend engine plant, John Battle, the Minister for Science, Energy, and Industry, emphasized his belief that solar energy will be one of the key technologies for the future.

We need to demonstrate the widespread application for photovoltaics to prepare for a future where PV will be competitive with electricity generated from conventional sources,” he said.


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