Brussels, 01/10/2013 (Agence Europe) - Global production of solar panels rose by 10% in 2012 and Europe is in the lead when it comes to new and total installed capacity.
According to the twelfth progress report on solar energy produced by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC), the production of solar panels around the world grew by 10% from 2011 to 2012, despite a 9% drop in investment in solar energy. The production of photovoltaic cells and modules has gone from 46 megawatts in 1990 to 38.5 gigawatts in 2012.
The EU is world leader in new installed capacity (16.8 of the 30 gigawatts of installed capacity in 2012) and cumulated installed capacity (69 of the 100 gigawatts installed in the world since 2000, enough to cover 2.4% of Europe's electricity requirements).
Within the EU, Germany tops the league with 7.6 gigawatts more solar panels in 2012, followed by Italy with 3.5 gigawatts of new capacity.
A sharp 80% drop in the cost of solar panels between 2008 and 2012 due to over-capacity has caused huge financial problems for manufacturers, but has led to consolidation and strong growth in the solar panel industry in Asia (up 60% in 2012, and forecast to double in 2013), explains the JRC, saying that between them, China and Taiwan now account for 70% of global production.
Despite a challenging economic climate, the number of new solar panels markets is rising and, together with the rising fuel prices and climate concerns, the JRC says this will ensure high demand for solar-fired energy systems. (EH/transl.fl)