Wind Energy

Record Growth in U.S. Solar Power Photovoltaic Market for 2011

Despite constituting less than six percent of worldwide installations in 2010, the United States is well positioned to become the focus of the global solar energy photovoltaic (PV) industry in the coming year, according to a whitepaper released today by international solar power developer Enfinity. Titled “The U.S. PV Market in 2011”, the report, produced in partnership with GTM Research, analyzes the key market drivers in the U.S. solar PV industry and predicts that 2011 will be a vital growth year for the country’s solar market.

“All eyes are on the U.S. PV market in 2011,” said Rafael Dobrzynski, Enfinity’s CEO in the Americas. “Being active in Europe as well as the Americas, we continually get questions—from both sides—about the U.S. market’s potential, demand ramp-up, and the reality of a national Feed-in-Tariff. Our white paper addresses these key issues as we delve into all these areas and provide valuable insights with hard numbers attached.”

Enfinity’s white paper identifies three factors that provide the United States with enormous, long-term potential for sustainable PV market growth:

* The United States is home to an excellent photovoltaic resource. While the Southwest provides the highest insolation, or exposure to the sun’s rays, even northeastern states offer insolation that is, at a minimum, equal to or greater than the resources of Germany.

* There is ample availability of land for PV development. The western states, in particular, have large tracts of open land that could support large PV installations.

* Electricity demand in the United States is the highest in the world. Electricity consumption in the United States is roughly 7.2 times the total in Germany and nearly 15 times as much as Spain. In 2010, U.S. PV installations more than doubled to an estimated 820 MW, up from 435 MW in 2009. While other markets such as Spain, Germany and the Czech Republic have faced drastic shifts, the United States has seen steady, if incremental, year-over-year growth.

Shayle Kann, managing director of solar at GTM Research, said, “It is difficult not to be bullish about the U.S. PV market. The economics have never made more sense. As PV system costs fall, electricity prices rise, and project finance returns to the table, the U.S. market is inching closer to reaching its potential as the center of global PV demand.”

www.enfinitycorp.com/lps/pvmarket2011/