Solar PV Market Size, Share & Trend Analysis Report By Application (Residential, Non-Residential/Commercial, Utility), Value Chain Analysis, Market Dynamics, And Segment Forecasts, 2012 - 2020

Industry Insights

The global solar PV market size was estimated at 239.93 GW in 2016, growing at a CAGR of 20.9% over the forecast period. Rising need for sustainable energy resources, coupled with favorable government regulations to reduce dependency on fossil fuels is expected to be a major driver for market growth.

Solar PV power generation systems being environmentally-friendly and renewable has proved to be lucrative across the European Union, Americas, and Asia Pacific. The various advantages obtained by employing solar PV includes a contribution to sustainability, reduction of the carbon footprint, and low-cost energy generation are expected to propel technology demand over the forecast period.

In 2016, North America accounted for 7.36% of the overall technology demand. According to IEA, the U.S. government has levied a multi-year extension on tax credits for renewable energy plants, such as concentrating solar power (CSP). Such initiatives are expected to benefit the market growth over the forecast period.

The cost of solar PV modules continues to decline owing to increasing production volumes particularly from leading U.S. manufacturers. In addition, component costs have also witnessed a sharp decline owing to lower raw material prices. Additional component prices witnessed a decline as much as 10% annually over the past few years. As a result, solar PV installations have become more economically feasible than before owing to a large number of installations, particularly from the residential and non-residential segments.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DoE) has laid down safety guidelines for photovoltaic systems. It has put forth codes, standards, and regulations (CSR), which govern the operation, commissioning, installation, construction, and design of these systems to protect the public welfare, safety, and health.

The energy sector has evolved significantly owing to technological innovations, with companies around the world striving to introduce sustainable, secure, and affordable energy systems. The clean energy options available today are cost-competitive; however, technological innovation needs to be accelerated over the next few years to meet the requirements of the growing population.

Application insights

In 2016, the utility segment witnessed the highest amount of installations, accounting for 47.2% of the overall demand. A continuous supply of energy and comparative lower expenses than conventional energy sources have made solar PV technology attractive for application in utilities. This factor is expected to propel the market growth over the forecast period.

The non-residential segment also saw substantial capacity additions in 2014 and is expected to continue until 2016 owing to the expiration of federal subsidies post 2016. The residential segment is expected to witness significant growth owing to reduced capital cost and improved efficiency of solar PV modules. However, the expiry of federal subsidies post 2016 is expected to witness a drop in installations particularly from the residential segment.

The residential application segment is expected to progress at an estimated CAGR of 21.0% over the forecast period. The increasing popularity of photovoltaic systems owing to its employment in electricity generation, to provide heating for residential buildings, at a low cost, is expected to propel the market growth over the forecast period.

Regional insights

The Mexican government has installed various solar, photovoltaic, and CSP projects across the country. Some of these include a photovoltaic project of 46.8 MW capacity in Puerto Libertad, Sonora. The world bank funded USD 50 million for a combined cycle gas turbine plant of 14 MW capacity equipped with troughs to collect energy, located in Agua Prieta, Sonora. As a result, the demand for photovoltaic systems in the country is expected to grow over the forecast period.

Increasing awareness among consumers regarding the environmental benefits of renewable energy is expected to augment market growth. Furthermore, large capacity additions are expected from the utility segment owing to growing pressure to meet renewable energy targets. The U.S. plans to contribute 20% of its energy demands from renewable energy by 2020. This is likely to come true based on the current rate of installations. Regulations and incentives specific to solar rooftop PV is also anticipated to boost residential installations over the forecast period.

According to IEA, the annual PV grid capacity in 2016 in China doubled as compared to the same in 2015. The region in 2016 had a PV grid operational capacity of 34.5 GW. The rising installations of solar thermal PV plants & power stations in the region is expected to positively drive the growth over the forecast period.

Solar PV market share insights

The industry is characterized by high competitive rivalry, with buyers and manufacturers entering into strategic partnerships. Companies such as First Solar, SunRun, Green Brilliance, and Suniva, have integrated their operations across the value chain by venturing into raw material supplying, manufacturing, and distribution sectors.

Over the past few years, many modules and ingot producers have shut down production facilities or have postponed their plans to expand production owing to increasing competition from various Chinese manufacturers. Solar PV modules imported from China are more cost-effective owing to lower labor costs and large scale production. As a result, the U.S. government on several occasions has issued anti-dumping and countervailing duty on PV module imports, particularly from China and Taiwan.

Companies in the industry are extensively involved in the R&D of solar PV, which has less impact on the environment. They are also trying to come up with innovative systems offering long-term energy storage solutions to fulfill the year-round need for power generation. Such initiatives by market participants are expected to propel the growth over the forecast period.

Report Scope 

Segments Covered in the Report

This report forecasts revenue and revenue growth at global, regional & country levels and provides an analysis of the industry trends in each of the sub-segments from 2012 to 2020. For this study, Grand View Research has segmented the global solar PV market on the basis of application and region.

• Application Outlook (Installed Capacity, MW; 2012 - 2020)

  • Residential

  • Non-Residential/Commercial

  • Utility

• Regional Outlook (Installed Capacity, MW; 2012 - 2020)

  • North America

  • Europe

  • Asia Pacific

    • China

  • Latin America

  • Rest of the World