Photovoltaic installed capacity in the Americas market increased by 120% year-on-year in 2012

According to the Q3 PV demand report released by IMS Research, the growth of the photovoltaic market in the Americas doubled to 1.7 GW in the first half of 2012 and is expected to reach 4.3 GW throughout the year. In the first half of this year, photovoltaic installations will increase by 120%, which will help the global PV market to grow at least 3GW.

The latest report released by IMS Research shows that in the first half of 2012, the global photovoltaic installed capacity exceeded 13GW, of which the German and American markets ranked first. Compared with 750MW in the same period of last year, the increase in the American market in the first half of 2012 exceeded 120% to reach 1.7GW. Ash Sharma, director of photovoltaic research at IMS Research, said: “Despite the lack of highlights in the performance of industry suppliers, the demand for infrastructure in the first half of the year was strong and the installed capacity increased by 35% compared to 2011. The American market, led by the United States, was an abnormal one, and its development momentum was very strong. There is no indication that the anti-dumping duty will slow down its growth rate."

In addition to China, the report finds that the United States will become the single largest contributor to the growth of global photovoltaics in 2012, contributing 40% of the global new installation growth. In contrast, the European market is expected to shrink by nearly 3 GW in 2012, although Germany has a very good start. Sharma said: "IMS Research is still optimistic about the U.S. PV market. We expect it will grow to at least 3.5 GW in 2012 and become the third largest PV market in the world. The long-term prospects of this market are somewhat uncertain, despite 2012 so far. Its speed of development has provided us with some morale."

Despite the slow growth in major European markets, Germany and Italy, it is expected that global demand will accelerate in the second half of 2012. IMS Research expects that the global PV installed capacity will reach a record 18GW in the second half of 2012, mainly driven by the Chinese, Japanese and American markets. Recently, China has approved a 1.7 GW gold solar project. These projects must be completed before the end of the year, and Japan's on-grid tariff subsidy policy has also come into effect on July 1, which will effectively stimulate market demand.