China dominates the market

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According to the European umbrella organization Solar Power Europe, 253 gigawatts of solar power capacity were added in the People's Republic alone in 2023.

(Bild: wessam - stock.adobe.com)

The global expansion of solar energy is progressing rapidly - but European solar module manufacturers hardly play a role anymore. Many manufacturers have already given up in the face of Chinese competition over the past decade.

Based on international market studies, the German Solar Industry Association (BSW) expects the global expansion of installed solar power capacity to exceed 500 gigawatts for the first time this year. Last year, 444 gigawatts were installed worldwide, of which 2.6 GW were in Austria and 15 GW in Germany.

This would put Germany in fourth place worldwide behind China, the USA and Brazil. Warmer European countries such as Spain and Italy ranked behind Germany with nine and a good five gigawatts respectively.

The global market is dominated by Chinese producers.

(Bild: AFP/STR)

Chinese dominance
The global market is dominated by Chinese producers. According to the Federal Statistical Office, 87% of photovoltaic systems imported to Germany in 2022 came from China. One welcome consequence for buyers is a widespread drop in the price of solar modules. German module manufacturers were still international leaders in the early 2000s, as BSW Managing Director Carsten Körnig said. However, many domestic manufacturers gave up in the face of Chinese competition in the past decade.

According to the European umbrella organization Solar Power Europe, 253 gigawatts of solar power capacity were added in the People's Republic alone in 2023, accounting for 60 percent of global expansion.

Private homeowners in the lead
According to BSW Managing Director Körnig, industry and commerce are now showing great interest in solar energy in Germany, even though private homeowners are still expanding the fastest overall. In 2023, around 760,000 new private solar systems with a capacity of 7.6 gigawatts were installed, an increase of 140 percent compared to the previous year. In Austria, too, the majority of new panels will be installed on the roofs of houses.

Solar systems on company roofs are much larger: although their number only increased by a comparatively modest 17,000, the newly installed output almost doubled to 2.7 gigawatts. In a survey of around 500 SMEs commissioned by the BSW, more than half said they wanted to install a solar system on their company roof in the next three years.