German Solar Market May Extend Growth in 2011, Phoenix Says

[jpak]

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-08-04/german-solar-market-may-extend-growth-in-2011-phoenix-says.html

Solar-panel installations in Germany, the world’s largest market in 2009, may expand again next year after almost doubling capacity this year, Phoenix Solar AG Chief Executive Officer Andreas Haenel said.

If solar panel manufacturers are able to cut prices at the same pace as reductions in the government-mandated tariffs for solar electricity generation, then demand may expand at a similar pace as 2010, Haenel said in an interview. Phoenix Solar sells and builds solar plants.

The German solar panel market could be as large as 7,000 megawatts this year, Haenel estimated. That would almost double the amount of solar power capacity. Growth is being supported by a so-called feed-in tariff that guarantees a fixed price for electricity generated by panels for 20 years.

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Markets that will increase demand or achieve a total of 1,000 megawatts newly installed capacity in the coming years include France, Italy, Japan and the U.S., Haenel said. A market of 1,000 megawatts, or 1 gigawatt, is an “important milestone,” he said.

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[txlibdem]

1. It's about time solar mfgrs cut prices

Solar panel prices have been nearly static for over 2 years now, partially because of the inflated demand in Germany caused by the too-high feed in tariff.

Solar PV needs to get far cheaper if it is to be able to break into the larger markets. There is a bright future for solar PV if they can bring down the price to $1 per watt. If not then concentrating solar will continue to be a far better option for power generation.