PV STATUS REPORT 2008:
Research, Solar Cell Production and Market Implementation
Europe's photovoltaic industry is growing rapidly and is now worth EUR 14 billion a year, according to the 2008 Status Report on Photovoltaics released by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC) this week. The report reviews global research, development, industry and policy efforts in photovoltaics throughout 2007 and sets out some recommendations.
The status report indicates that solar photovoltaic production grew by an average of 40% annually since 2003, peaking at 60% growth in 2007. Germany was a clear leader in the European market with a EUR 5.7 billion turnover (more than 100,000 houses installed solar panels). Half of the world's photovoltaic-based electricity production, which totals 10 Billion KWh, comes from the EU.