The Photovoltaic Industry in Germany

The German government has set PV installation targets of 215 GWp by 2030 and 400 GWp by 2040 respectively. Germany met the 9 GWp target for the year 2023 in just eight months - exceeding it by several gigawatts (14.1 GW capacity). Capacity almost doubled on the previous year's levels. Germany now holds the record for the largest solar capacity installed in an EU country in a single year.

 

1. European market leader

   Germany occupies one quarter of the EU market and leads the list of EU countries with the largest cumulative PV capacity. With around 80.7 GWp today, it is ahead of Spain and Italy (approximately 30 GWp respectively), the Netherlands (23 GWp) and France (19 GWp). 

2. Renewables lead electricity mix

   59.7 percent renewable energy share of all electricity production in Germany in 2023, with 12 percent solar power share (52.24 TWh). 

3. Europe's largest residential customer market

   The majority of new systems installed in 2021 were smaller than 30 kWp in size – making Germany  the largest residential customer market in Europe by some distance.

4. Own-consumption segments driving the market

   Germany is the fastest-growing market for rooftop solar PV in Europe. The potential rooftop surface area in Germany alone allows for an installed capacity of around 200 GWp. The own-consumption segments are the driving force of the future PV market in Germany.

Germany was the leading market for residential battery storage systems in 2021. Around 150,000 home batteries were installed, resulting in 1.3 GWh of additional capacity. In 2022, the home storage systems (HSS) market recorded annual battery-energy growth of 52 percent, making it the largest stationary storage market in the country. 

The emerging market for industrial storage systems (ISS) grew by 24 percent in 2022, with a total of 1,200 ISS (0.08 GWh/0.04 GW) installed. 

The market for large-scale storage systems (LSS) increased dramatically by 910 percent with 47 LSS (0.47 GWh/0.43 GW) commissioned. Market analyst SolarPower Europe expects annual installations to reach 2.6 GWh in 2026 - about twice as much as in 2021. 

The very high attachment rate between batteries and residential solar - estimated in the range of 80 percent - shows that R-BESS will become almost part of a standard solar system in Germany. This will ensure stable market expansion as long as the home rooftop market continues to grow.  Retrofit storage installations will also be a major driver for improving energy self-sufficiency in private households and commercial operations.

The inverter market continues to profit from the large base of existing PV installations as well as new inverter systems (such as hybrid and micro inverters for new PV systems). Innovative data management systems and new tools for optimizing PV systems efficiency and operations are other promising fields within the German PV market.

Germany’s role as the pioneering market in the grid-parity environment allows companies to test, define and introduce new industry standards. Innovative PV sales strategies, system configurations and integration processes - including storage and demand management - are intrinsic components of the specialist expertise being developed in Germany.

International companies wishing to sell photovoltaic products in the European Union must fulfill established quality and safety requirements. In Germany, solar photovoltaic modules are certified according to European Norm (EN) standards. Manufacturers must comply with the ''safety class II'' norms that certify the electrical safety of photovoltaic modules. The certifications for design qualification and type approval (EN 61215 and EN 61464) have become an industry essential, although they are not required by law.

Quality marks remain optional for PV-storage systems (excluding the CE certificate). However, battery customers value products that comply with specific safety guidelines such as the “Safety Guideline for Li-Ion Home Storage Systems" developed by the German Energy Storage Association and its partners.

Continued optimization of production technologies and processes is made possible through close cooperation with excellent R&D institutions, universities, and leading material and equipment suppliers. Germany’s national and regional ministries and the EU support R&D projects in several renewable energies sectors through a number of institutional funding programs.

Downstream companies and service providers - such as system integrators, project developers, plant management, and energy trading companies - can source know-how from a large pool of specialists. They also benefit from a unique PV infrastructure in terms of experienced installers, banks that offer attractive international financing models, and local authorities guaranteeing fast and easy access to the grid.

State-of-the-art infrastructure - partly supplied by a well-developed chemicals industry - provides production sites that offer not only industry-specific utilities and services, but also a holistic, closed-loop “materials to recycling” approach - especially for innovative PV  (e.g. OPV) and storage technologies (e.g. batteries and fuel cells).

Considerable experience in PV manufacturing and close synergies between the PV, semiconductor, and microelectronics sectors create a readily available workforce - particularly in the energy, battery and plant-management-technology sectors. There are also more than 300 university degree courses with a strong PV and other renewable energies focus. 

Quick and easy access to a flexible labor pool with a solid PV-related education and training, competitive labor costs, and high productivity rates combine to guarantee new businesses optimal levels of professionalization and competitiveness from the get-go.