Solar firms should start focusing on small, emerging markets

Report says these markets are the future. A new report by IHS estimates that photovoltaic installations in small, emerging markets could rise at about triple the global average during the period from 2012 through 2017. Annual installations in these emerging countries are expected to increase to 10.9 GW in 2017, expanding at a compound annual growth rate of 38% from 2.2 GW in 2012. In contrast, the overall global market will expand at a CAGR of only 13% during the same period. The emerging markets will account for 19% of global solar installations in 2017, up from just 7% in 2012. IHS noted that across the world, new markets for solar PV are emerging, propelled by government incentives, including tenders for large-scale contracts, feed-in-tariff schemes and self-consumption support. Although these markets sometimes have huge hurdles like limited financing, regulatory uncertainty and opaque local regulatory conditions, companies throughout the solar supply chain can benefit from targeting these fast-growing emerging countries. Of the emerging countries IHS analyzed, Thailand and Turkey are expected to become the largest markets in the coming years. Both countries have the potential to install a cumulative total of nearly 3 GW of PV systems during the period from 2013 through 2017.