China and Japan drive global PV demand in 2013

Global solar photovoltaic (PV) demand is forecast to reach 20 GW in the second half of 2013, NPD Solarbuzz predicts.

Aggressive PV development in China and Japan will largely drive the increase, which will see full-year 2013 PV demand hit a record high of 35.1 GW, the NPD Solarbuzz Quarterly report claims.

“The solar PV industry continues to transition from a European-dominated environment to a global market, with a wide range of countries contributing to growth in the overall PV market,” said Michael Barker, Senior Analyst at NPD Solarbuzz.

“Until this transition phase is completed, however, the PV industry remains highly dependent on a small group of countries currently at the multi-GW level.”

2013 solar demand by region. Source: June 2013 NPD Solarbuzz Quarterly report.

Global PV demand during the first half of 2013 reached 15 GW, up 9% on the same period in 2012, the report showed. More than 60% of this demand came from Germany, China, Japan and the US. Large-scale utility and commercial ground-mount applications provided 45% of first-half PV demand. Residential rooftop installations accounted for 20%, with the remainder coming from non-residential rooftop installations and off-grid applications.

During the second half of 2013, deployment from just two countries - China and Japan - is forecast to account for more than 45% of global PV demand. While the European region accounted for almost half of global PV demand during the second half of 2012, this figure is predicted to decline to less than 30% during the second half of 2013.

“Just three years ago, solar PV installations in China and Japan were contributing less than 10% of the second-half global market share,” said Barker. “In 2013, the number of large-scale PV projects completed in these two countries alone will determine the level of annual growth from the industry, and by how much global demand can exceed the 35 GW mark.”