Competition from the Far East overrun German solar industry

Ironically, the German solar industry is threatening to become losers in the energy transition will be. Almost every other solar system installed in Germany comes from China.

The main job of the head of Business Development Born in Essen in the green of the Italian energy group Enel subsidiary. When it comes to the promotion of solar electricity from photovoltaics, the hatches like a trained electrical engineer in the role of the association's official.

What William says is the current manager for the German photovoltaic manufacturer in disguise staying slogan. Many of the local module and cell producers will experience the sunny side of the solar industry is no longer good. Dramatic drops in turnover and lost millions in the first three months of this year have one term profit machine like Q-Cells, Solon or Conergy long fight for survival. Rising raw material costs, lower selling prices and subsidy cuts in key European markets allow for the majority of the full-year manufacturers seem bleak. And although the industry was able to prevent severe cuts in the subsidies of solar power, it threatens the big loser of the energy transition to be away from the atom.


The blame on moaning, according to manager of battered manufacturers, especially the world was "weak economy" in Germany, with 54 percent of all installed equipment of the largest solar market. Trigger is the Federal Government on the remuneration for fed into the grid solar power at the beginning with small roof installations again, this time from 33 to 28.74 cents per kilowatt hour, severed.

In reality, however, the slump - at least this year - not so great. Been in Germany in 2010 were still plants with a total installed capacity of 7.4 gigawatts, it should be this year, up to six gigawatts, and a gigawatt is roughly equivalent to the performance of a large coal-fired power plant. The reasons for the less fit homeowner's glittering panels and investors wait for major projects lie elsewhere: Driven by declining compensation for their solar electricity, customers are increasingly speculating that the price of photovoltaic cells and modules continue to fall.

Victims and perpetrators of this development are also the manufacturers themselves, because their production was due to the high support in this country almost always sold out, most companies failed to reduce their costs in time to take on new markets to target and adapt to tough competition from Asia . You are so, an analysis of the Berlin University of Applied Sciences (HTW) for the WirtschaftsWoche end of last year, too expensive, too slow and become unimaginative.

"The figures demonstrate the excellent potential of photovoltaics," beamed William a few days ago as president of the European Photovoltaic Industry Association Industry Association in Brussels. Lobbyists Association presented the report Global Market Outlook for Photovoltaics until 2015, the manufacturers and operators predicts a bright future. Until 2015, William's message would explode, the total installed capacity of electricity-generating solar cells in Europe to 200 gigawatts - a smooth five-fold increase on current levels.