Jan 25 2011
MarketResearch.com has released BCC Research’s latest offering titled "Photovoltaics: Global Markets and Technologies". PV technology has been utilized from 1950 onwards. However this technology started advancing and developing for use by consumers and industry only from the 1970s when oil restrictions and embargoes were seen.
The research and development activities once again declined when the oil prices stabilized, which eventually led to reduction on government funding for R&D, tax credits and investments. In spite of all the changing scenarios the PV technology development along with its materials continued and cost-shared programs, R&D funding along with industry activity increased in the late 1990s and over the past twenty years there has been an exceptionally high growth rates of 30 to 40% or more annually.
During the first ten years of the 21st century oil prices have increased greatly as demand for oil kept growing . PV technologies is now at the forefront of the energy sector with many companies concentrating on the achievement of grid parity, which is trying to equalize the costs of fossil fuel and solar energy with an aim to widen PV technology’s scope. Many of the individual states and nations initiated incentives such as tax credits and tariffs for solar consumers. In 2010, global shipments of PV modules or cells reached 11,102 MW and are expected to become 55,621 MW by 2015 i.e. achieving a 38% compound annual growth rate (CAGR).
In 2009, the material cost was estimated to be $21.8 million and in 2010 it was $26.5 million. Advances made in efficiencies and manufacturing processes would decrease the quantities of the materials utilized in the solar cells and thus their value would increase by a CAGR of 12.3% by 2015 and reach a figure of $47 million. In 2009 and 2010 the global module shipments were valued at $$32.4 million and $41.2 million respectively and are expected to grow with a CAGR of 13.6% from 2010 to 2015 and reach $78 million due to increasingly efficient PV production methods.