IEA-PVPS: Global Photovoltaic Installation Reached 1.6TW in 2023

Recently, the International Energy Agency's Photovoltaic Power System Program (IEA-PVPS) released a global photovoltaic market report, which covers the installation, manufacturing, policy trends, and grid integration of photovoltaic systems.

According to the 2024 Global Photovoltaic Market snapshot report released by IEA-PVPS, the installed capacity of photovoltaic systems worldwide has increased from 1.2TW in 2022 to 1.6TW in 2023.

Analysts say that up to 446GW of photovoltaic systems will be put into use in 2023, mainly driven by the rapid growth of the Chinese photovoltaic market, and it is estimated that there is currently a global inventory of 1.5GW of photovoltaic modules.

IEA-PVPS stated, "After several years of rising material and transportation costs, the prices of photovoltaic modules have plummeted in a market of oversupply. Even though electricity prices have dropped after reaching historical peaks in 2022, photovoltaic power generation has maintained strong competitiveness."

The report states that the oversupply of photovoltaic modules last year revealed the difficulties faced in coordinating production and demand in this highly diverse environment. The report points out that although the production of photovoltaic modules has increased significantly, the increase in installed capacity of photovoltaic systems only occurs in a few countries outside of China.

The report states that "some countries have uneven political support for the photovoltaic market, which may be attributed to difficulties in developing local photovoltaic module manufacturing facilities in already saturated markets." IEA-PVPS explained in the report that due to increased inventory, oversupply, and fierce competition among photovoltaic module manufacturers, photovoltaic module prices have significantly decreased, which has also put pressure on the photovoltaic module manufacturing industry in some countries.

In other aspects, IEA-PVPS stated that both the rooftop photovoltaic market and the utility scale photovoltaic market have seen growth in size in 2023. Approximately 45% of the newly installed capacity comes from rooftop photovoltaic systems. Since 2018, the global rooftop photovoltaic market has continued to gradually grow in size, and the reduction of installation costs and the increase in electricity costs have prompted investors to accelerate their investment in rooftop photovoltaic systems. The report points out that producers and consumers around the world are becoming more active market drivers, while also noting that some net measurement rules are being lifted as the cost of photovoltaic modules decreases.

Last year, the number of countries with theoretical penetration rates of rooftop photovoltaic systems exceeding 10% doubled to 18. Spain, the Netherlands, Chile, and Greece are leading in this indicator, while countries with larger populations such as Germany and Japan have also surpassed 10% for the first time.

IEA-PVPS states that as more and more countries have higher photovoltaic penetration rates, transmission and distribution system operators are becoming more proactive in managing photovoltaic systems. Some smaller countries and regions have such high penetration rates that rooftop photovoltaic systems can provide 100% electricity in just a few hours.

The report also points out that policy support for battery energy storage systems is being promoted, especially in countries with grid congestion, high photovoltaic penetration rates, or high electricity costs. The report warns that in some countries, grid congestion and longer grid connection times prevent local markets from fully realizing their potential. IEA-PVPS states that the cost burden of managing, strengthening, and updating power grid infrastructure is becoming one of the more sensitive topics.

The report states, "As penetration rates increase, it is necessary to establish new governance models that are compatible with market and climate policy driven deployment goals to ensure the smooth deployment of photovoltaic systems."

In the broader energy transition, IEA-PVPS states that photovoltaic power generation will play an important role, with the installed capacity of photovoltaic systems installed in 2023 accounting for over 75% of all renewable energy installed capacity, attributed to sustained cost reduction, technological performance and accessibility, as well as generally faster licensing procedures than wind or hydroelectric power facilities.

The report released by EA-PVPS was released earlier this year after the report on the disposal chain of scrapped photovoltaic modules in Germany, grid integration measures, and vehicle integrated photovoltaics.