Market performance

Annual growth rates of cumulative installed photovoltaic capacity continue to hover around 40 %, with a significant and increasing proportion of worldwide capacity found in the IEA PVPS countries.

PV technology can be employed in a variety of applications, and crystalline silicon technologies currently account for most of the overall PV production.

Costs and prices

The continuing development of PV technology should continue to lower the cost of producing solar electricity and grid parity could be achieved in a number of countries over the next decade or so. Depending on the way retail electricity price tariffs are structured, this will be a significant milestone on the road to self-sustaining markets for grid-connected PV.

Economics

• About 100 000 people were directly employed in the PV sector in IEA PVPS countries in 2007, across PV R&D, manufacturing and deployment.
• The net annual business value of PV activities in IEA PVPS countries approached 17 billion USD.
  

Potential

The deployment of grid-connected PV worldwide is expected to remain steady or accelerate, thanks to:

• Continued PV technology cost reductions
• Concerns about global warming and energy security
• The needs of evolving electricity supply networks
  

In developing countries, PV offers the ability to:

• Provide electricity to populations remote from electricity grids
• Enhance the quality of existing electricity supplies
  

Barriers

Sustained long-term support for PV research and development and applications is crucial—and dependent upon:

• Continuing worldwide political support, country by country
• Striking the right balance between R&D and market-stimulation funding