Global PV capacity to reach 295 GW in 2016, GlobalData says

Global installed photovoltaic (PV) capacity will rise to 294.69 GW this year from about 225 GW in 2015, led by China, research and consulting firm GlobalData said on Tuesday.

In 2015, PV capacity increased by 49.81 GW compared to 2014, with China adding 15.13 GW, according to the firm's report.

GlobalData said China will remain the world's largest market for annual PV installations in 2016, followed by the US and Japan.

In the first quarter of 2016 alone, China installed 7.14 GW of PV capacity, including 6.17 GW of utility-scale projects and 970 MW of distributed systems, said Ankit Mathur, GlobalData's practice head covering power.

"In the first half of 2016, a rush of solar PV installations was witnessed, as PV power projects which were connected to the electricity grid prior to June 30, 2016 will be entitled to reap benefits from higher 2015 solar feed-in tariffs (FiTs)," Mathur added.

Solar demand in China fell in the third quarter of 2016 due to FiT cuts.

"The new solar PV installation tariffs and distributed PV electricity price subsidy standards will reduce gradually over time in order to promote scientific and technological development and efficiency, and improve the market competitiveness of PV power generation," Mathur also said.

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