2020, a sunny year for photovoltaics

IHS Markit, a specialized consultancy, indicates that this year the world will install 142,000 megawatts of photovoltaic energy

Photovoltaic energy continues its rapid expansion throughout the world and in 2020 it seems that it will do so with a sun that will shine especially brightly. And according to IHS Markit, an American consulting firm, the global energy market will favor the installation of 142,000 megawatts of photovoltaic energy, which is a significant figure considering that in 2010, 20,000 megawatts of this type of energy were installed worldwide.

Continuing with this comparison of the last decade, in 2010 there were only seven countries, most of them in Europe, which had more than a thousand megawatts installed. The landscape has changed so much in just ten years that 2020 will close with 43 countries exceeding the installation of a thousand megawatts, with China being the undisputed leader, although its influence will gradually wane in favor of new players, especially in Southeast Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East, over the years.

As this consultancy points out, if the decade of the 2010s was that of technological innovation, that of the reduction of technological costs and that of subsidies for investments; 2020 will mark a new decade in which the expansion of photovoltaic demand across the globe, combined with new players and an increase in competitiveness compared to traditional energy sources, will leave behind the world of subsidies and allow for market diversification and expansion.

How will the photovoltaic pie be distributed by region?

Looking at the forecasts by region, we can conclude the following based on the cited study:

• China. Photovoltaic demand will not reach its record of 2017, when a total of fifty gigawatts of solar photovoltaic power was installed.

• United States. The American country will experience a growth in installed solar power of a not inconsiderable 20%, which will allow it to consolidate its position as the second largest photovoltaic market, after China.

• Europe. The old continent will grow at a good pace, installing 24,000 new megawatts, 5% more than what was installed in 2019. Spain, Germany, the Netherlands, France, Italy and Ukraine are the main players, which will accumulate 63% of this new power.

• India. The world’s second most populous country looks set to have a chance at redemption in 2020 after a year filled with regulatory uncertainty and uncertainty surrounding solar panel imports. India will add 14,000 new megawatts to its solar photovoltaic capacity this year.