Market Environment

The photovoltaic market has a dynamic and sustained growth rate of 40-50% a year. Its growth is fueled in particular by the governmental goal of a structural change in energy supply and the associated governmental subsidies. Out of phases of oversupply, shortages will emerge and vice versa. The exact knowledge of the current market situation is a crucial factor for purchasing activities as this influences the pricing terms and conditions.

Particularly noteworthy is the development of the manufacturing base for PV: Originally, characterized by European and Japanese companies, the market is moving toward a Chinese-dominated manufacturing base that has increased their market share in the last 10 years to around 60%. Companies in India and the U.S. are also now significantly contributing to the global capacity.

Besides the established brands, there are now a number of lesser-known companies that also produce significant quantities. Some manufacturers produce goods with very different quality. Sometimes the impact of this deviation becomes visible only after several years of operation, and at other times within a few months or, in the best of cases, at the time of receipt of the modules. The assertion of warranty claims, however, is usually difficult. Therefore, it is advisable to avoid this situation by a complete quality control at the beginning of the supply chain.

Another problem are product knock-offs. Sometimes third parties procedure inferior modules and tag them with counterfeit labels. Here it is of crucial importance that the product can be traced back to its source.

It also occurs that "reputable" manufacturers, because of supply shortages or for cost reductions reasons, use materials not listed in the certificate. In these circumstances, the certificate of supply is usually worthless for the affected batches and the continued project financing will be at risk.

Professional support is thus required and this is where we come in. Be it for supplier selection, contract negotiations or quality assurance - we support you with a professional team.