The latest update of the PVPS Annual International Survey Report Trends in Photovoltaic Applications covering the period 1992-1999 is now available.

The report gives an overview of installed generation capacity, application segmentation, manufacturing capabilities and the business and political environments for PV in the 20 countries participating in PVPS as at the end of 1999. Market development trends over the preceding 8 years are also analyzed.
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Market expansion
The market for PV power continues to grow rapidly: between 1998 and 1999 the total installed capacity grew by 31%, to reach 516 MWp. Japan's New Sunshine Programme, which commenced in 1995 is now exerting a major influence on the trends in participating countries (see box). Of the 121 MWp installed during 1999, 60% was installed in Japan alone. If Japan is excluded from the analysis, installed capacity grew by 19% in the remaining countries - similar to the previous year. Collectively Japan, USA and Germany accounted for 87% of the PV installed in 1999.
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Applications
In the most recent report the market is divided into three sectors (a change from previous reports): off-grid applications, distributed on-grid and centralized on-grid applications.

Overall the trend is for an increase in the proportion of grid-connected systems. In 1992 only 29% of the installed capacity was connected to the grid; this had increased to 53% by the end of 1999. Again, this is largely due to significant government-subsidized programmes in Japan, the USA and Germany, which have a predominant on-grid focus.

Nevertheless, off-grid applications - for seasonal/ recreational buildings, rural electrification, pumping, agricultural uses, traffic signals and telecommunications for instance - are still very important in many countries. Indeed 90% of the combined capacity in Australia, Canada, Finland, France, Israel, Mexico, Norway, Portugal and Sweden is off-grid.
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Fiscal report
The total budget allocated by government bodies to support the PV industry increased by 4% between 1998 and 1999, to USD 479 million. Over 50% of the 1999 funding was allocated by Japan. Spending trends show an increasing proportion of the budget is for initiatives to encourage market deployment as opposed to research, development and demonstration.

The ISR summarizes key initiatives in the reporting countries and shows that a range of fiscal instruments are being used to support and promote PV, including: reduced interest rates, tax credits, accelerated depreciation, grants, and preferential tariffs. Utilities are seen to be increasingly supportive of PV with initiatives such as net metering and investments in PV.
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Nurturing the market
Many countries have set targets to increase PV deployment significantly in the near/ medium term (Germany, Finland, France, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands and the USA) which can be attributed to the Kyoto Protocol. Another major influence is energy market deregulation.

Public opinion appears to be generally supportive of PV although lack of awareness and access to information remains a barrier in some countries. Education is increasingly being recognized as a key aspect of national programmes. A number of countries, including Germany, Japan, Israel and the UK have programmes to install PV systems on schools and universities.
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Production and prices The report also summarizes information on cell and module production, technology preferences and trends in system prices. Total module production increased by 34% between 1998 and 1999 to 168 MWp a year, primarily in Japan and the USA. Japanese production alone increased by 67%, largely to meet the increased demand in the home market. However overall production remains well below capacity (52%) in all producing countries. In terms of the technology used, 84% of the modules produced in 1999 were crystalline silicon, of which 60% was multi-crystalline and 40% was single crystalline. Amorphous crystalline is emerging as a viable alternative in the PV market, with production more than doubling between 1998 and 1999. In addition, CdTe and CIS manufacturing plants are planned or operational in Japan, Germany and the USA. Generally the price of systems has not changed significantly since 1998, although reductions were seen in France, Italy and Japan. On-grid building integrated systems of 1-3 kWp are typically between 6-12 USD/Wp installed, though prices below 6 USD/Wp were reported in Denmark and Germany. Off-grid systems remain competitive in many applications. The report also includes the latest news on standards and codes in the reporting countries and a PV technology note on balance of system components, prices manufacturers and suppliers. [ Top ] Information To order copies of the report (IEA  PVPS T1-08:2000) contact your national Task 1 representative or download it now as PDF file (370 kB).

Behind the scenes: Japanese PV programme influences world-wide trends Japan has several large PV demonstration and field test programmes, which expanded dramatically in 1999, moving towards the target of 5 000 MWp of installed PV capacity by 2010. Residential PV systems, of typically 3-5 kWp, are subsidized on the condition that the individuals provide operational data on their system. Between 1994 and 1998 15 596 PV systems were installed on dwellings and a further 17 396 houses were accepted under this programme in 1999. Other programmes provide subsidies for local public organizations and private industrialists who are establishing new energy businesses. Net metering has been available in Japan since 1992.

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