European Sales of Small Solar Thermal Systems Decline while Large Systems Remain Unaffected

A week before Intersolar Europe opens its doors in Munich, ESTIF- the European Solar Thermal Industry Federation – releases latest market statistics and trends

Following an outstanding growth in 2008, the European solar thermal market decreased by 10% in 2009. For the second year in a row, over 4 million square metres of solar collector panels were sold in Europe. However, the outlook for 2010 remains uncertain as the financial and economic crisis continues to have a negative impact on public support and incentive policies for renewable solar heating and cooling.

2009 was a challenging year for the solar thermal sector in Europe. While still the leader with an overall share of 38%, the German market contracted by 23% Furthermore, the effects of the current economic downturn have been felt most acutely in recently booming countries such as France, Spain and Italy.

However, the “solar thermal sector still outperformed a market environment characterized by struggling building industries in many European countries and the global economic crisis”, says Olivier Drücke, ESTIF President. Smaller markets like Denmark, the Netherlands, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, all below 200,000 m² newly installed capacity per annum, posted a double digit growth in 2009. The Portuguese solar thermal market even experienced a twofold increase due to a new financial incentive scheme.

Obviously fuel prices and economic activity have a significant impact on solar thermal markets; however, our sector’s stability remains fragile being highly dependent on the diversified and inconsistent support mechanisms available for solar thermal technologies across Europe. Often, periods of strong growth are followed by sharp downturns, a trend illustrated by the past two years with a substantial increase of 60% in 2008 and a decrease of 10% in 2009.

Business in 2010 will hence be affected by the impact of the financial and economic crisis on public support and incentive policies across Europe. In this context, we should bear in mind that “renewables are today an integral part of the energy policy agenda in most European countries, a fact primarily due to the RES directive and its forthcoming incorporation into national legislations.” remarks Xavier Noyon, ESTIF Secretary General.

Interestingly enough, and surely another positive sign, orders for large solar installations seem to be unaffected by the market downturn.

Short URL: http://www.solarthermalmagazine.com/?p=1894

Posted by Tracey A. Smith on Jun 4 2010. Filed under Conferences, Europe, Headline, Solar Thermal Industry News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry