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Photovoltaics, China solar boom: 12GW of additional capacity installed in 2013
In 2013, the Asian giant set another record, by installing 12GW of PV capacity in its territory. According to BNEF, further 14GW of PV capacity will be installed by 2014.
"The sleeping dragon has awoken": with these words, Jenny Chase, head of solar analysis at Bloomberg New Energy Finance, an international research firm in clean energy markets, announces China’s achievement in terms of production of electricity from photovoltaic sources in 2013.
No country in the world has ever added more than 8GW of solar energy in a single year before 2013, a record set by the Land of the Dragon just a year ago, in fact, by installing new facilities in its territory with a capacity of approximately 9.5GW, compared to 12GW at the end of 2013, China’s National Energy Administration states. Not surprisingly, just in 2013, China’s three major producers of solar energy, China’s that is, China Power Investment Corporation, China Three Gorges and China Huadian Corporation, have become the world’s largest owners of solar assets.
What is more, the advance of the Asian giant does not seem to stop here. Bloomberg, who recently announced China and India’s major role in renewable energy production (2/3 of the total by 2030), also provides that, by 2014, further 14GW of PV capacity will be installed in the country, preferably on the roofs (60% of the total) of western Chinese provinces, the sunniest and most desolate ones, so to connect them to the distribution grid rather than the transmission one.
According to Bloomberg, however, China may undershot the target set for 2014, since a shift to rooftops, rather than remote deserts, could result in legal and financial complications, even if higher PV growth is expected by 2015.
PV is becoming cheaper and simpler to install, and the Chinese Government, as well as the European ones, are pleasantly surprised by market rapid developing, also encouraged by state incentives. The Chinese Government, in its effort to improve the air quality and the environment, could even prohibit coal by 2020 in at least six of its districts.
The world’s largest markets for new photovoltaic capacity installed include China, Japan and the United States, while Germany, who has been for many years the most important investor in the sector, is only fourth. Italy, which only in 2012 invested $14.1 billion in renewable energy, collects a good fifth place, considering its small size (compared to China, India and the USA) and the current economic situation.
Bloomberg New Energy Finance estimates the global PV market in 2013 to have been 39GW, that is, a +28% increase compared to 2012; a further 20% increase is expected by 2014.
No country in the world has ever added more than 8GW of solar energy in a single year before 2013, a record set by the Land of the Dragon just a year ago, in fact, by installing new facilities in its territory with a capacity of approximately 9.5GW, compared to 12GW at the end of 2013, China’s National Energy Administration states. Not surprisingly, just in 2013, China’s three major producers of solar energy, China’s that is, China Power Investment Corporation, China Three Gorges and China Huadian Corporation, have become the world’s largest owners of solar assets.
What is more, the advance of the Asian giant does not seem to stop here. Bloomberg, who recently announced China and India’s major role in renewable energy production (2/3 of the total by 2030), also provides that, by 2014, further 14GW of PV capacity will be installed in the country, preferably on the roofs (60% of the total) of western Chinese provinces, the sunniest and most desolate ones, so to connect them to the distribution grid rather than the transmission one.
According to Bloomberg, however, China may undershot the target set for 2014, since a shift to rooftops, rather than remote deserts, could result in legal and financial complications, even if higher PV growth is expected by 2015.
PV is becoming cheaper and simpler to install, and the Chinese Government, as well as the European ones, are pleasantly surprised by market rapid developing, also encouraged by state incentives. The Chinese Government, in its effort to improve the air quality and the environment, could even prohibit coal by 2020 in at least six of its districts.
The world’s largest markets for new photovoltaic capacity installed include China, Japan and the United States, while Germany, who has been for many years the most important investor in the sector, is only fourth. Italy, which only in 2012 invested $14.1 billion in renewable energy, collects a good fifth place, considering its small size (compared to China, India and the USA) and the current economic situation.
Bloomberg New Energy Finance estimates the global PV market in 2013 to have been 39GW, that is, a +28% increase compared to 2012; a further 20% increase is expected by 2014.
