Global solar PV market continues to grow

There’s yet more good news for users of solar PV panels and social energy as new market data shows adoption rates have increased globally – while new building regulations in the UK look set to push solar panels, heat pumps and infrared heaters to the fore as the electricalisaiton of people’s homes continues apace. 

Data from Wiseguyreports shows that investment in solar energy products on a global scale has gone up more than tenfold in the past 15 years, now topping out at 113 billion dollars. Two big drivers of the uplift have been China and India, who recorded annual growth rates of more than 80% in the 10 years between 2005 and 2015. 

The declining costs of solar technology combined with the increased demand for energy from renewable sources will continue to drive global growth, it is predicted. 

Meanwhile, the release of the Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP) 10 guidelines in the UK could serve to further accelerate the adoption of renewable sources of power and heat, such as solar panels, air source heat pumps and infrared heating, in UK homes. 

There’s been a huge shift towards favouring electricity as a source, with the carbon emission factor of that source being reduced by 55% to reflect the ongoing decarbonisation of the grid supply. 

It is expected that more and more new homes and apartments will be built with the SAP 10 regulations in mind, leading to greater use of electricity over gas as a source of heating and power, coming into line with the boom in the electric vehicle market and the increasing number of EV charging stations outside homes. By 2025, the current UK government has said that gas central heating will be outlawed completely in all new builds.