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02 MARKET AND INDUSTRY TRENDS
Mergers and acquisitions, as well as new partnerships, continued
among manufacturers and installers as part of the trend to enter
other markets (locations or applications) or to capture value in
project development. 130 For example, Shunfeng International
(China), the owner of once-bankrupt Suntech, acquired a majority
stake in Suniva, gaining the opportunity to operate in the United
States. 131 Canadian Solar purchased Recurrent Energy (United
States) from Sharp (Japan) to move further into construction and
to boost demand for its products. 132 SunPower acquired Cogenra
(both United States) to build a new line of modules to tap into
markets in Africa, China and India. 133 The Chinese government
continued to push for mergers and acquisitions among domestic
solar manufacturers. 134
Market consolidation also continued among O&M providers in
2015. 135 Most leading solar PV manufacturers have expanded
downstream into project development and into engineering,
procurement and construction (EPC) to keep more business
in-house and reduce costs, and many EPCs (including
manufacturers) have moved into O&M of the plants they
construct. 136 In 2015, European-based EPC companies continued
looking towards growth markets, particularly in Japan, the United
States and in the Middle East. 137 The market for megawatt-scale
O&M sustained its rapid growth as more plants aged out of
warranty coverage, and because the industry remains attractive
even when construction slows (as in Europe). 138 By the end of
2015, the global megawatt-scale O&M market exceeded 130
GW. 139 New trends that became more apparent during 2015 are
the growing split between O&M for large-scale projects, and the
increased interest of inverter companies in the O&M business. 140
Several strategic partnerships were established, including:
SoftBank Group (Japan) and Sharp joined forces with the aim
of dramatically reducing installation and maintenance costs;
leading US installer SolarCity partnered with DirecTV and the
home automation company Nest; and US rooftop developer
Sungevity teamed with E.ON to advance initiatives in Europe. 141 In
addition, several partnerships focused on energy storage options
for commercial and residential markets in Australia, Japan, the
United States, some European countries and elsewhere. 142
The year 2015 saw the formation of several new yield companies
(yieldcos). They accounted for nearly one third of large-scale
project acquisitions during the second quarter. 143 But after
soaring in early 2015, the value of many yieldcos plummeted midyear,
largely in response to declining crude oil prices, prompting
many companies to attract investors in other ways. 144
Other innovative financing options and business models –
including solar leases, behind-the-meter PPAs, green bonds
and crowdfunding – continued to spread, reducing barriers to
customer adoption while increasing the potential for profits. 145
An increasing number of firms – including solar developers
and installers, investment companies and major banks – have
entered the solar financing market, particularly in the United
States. 146 New online investment platforms are enabling people
to invest in solar PV projects around the world. 147 In late 2015,
CrossBoundary Energy (United States/Kenya) announced the
first close of a dedicated fund for commercial and industrial solar
in Africa through SolarAfrica (United Kingdom). 148
Innovations also focused on technology improvements including
streamlining manufacturing processes, lowering costs through
materials substitution, reducing environmental impacts and
improving efficiency. 149 Efficiency records were achieved for new
cells and modules, some of which were set to begin production in
2016. 150 Perovskitesi furthered their rapid advance, with efficiency
increasing five-fold in six years, but hurdles remain before they
can be commercialised. 151 For the near term, Passivated Emitter
and Rear Cellii (PERC) coating technology shows promise for
increasing cell efficiency in standard production processes. 152
Innovations also continued in areas such as solar windows,
spray-on solar and printed solar cells, and both Merck (Germany)
and Emirates Insolaire (United Arab Emirates) announced the
availability of new building-integrated solar PV (BIPV) products
for the façades of buildings. 153 Although they remain a niche
market, “smart” and AC modules iii – incorporating electronics
to maximise output – were offered by an increasing number of
module makers in order to differentiate their products. 154 (For
information on another development, PV-T, see Solar Thermal
Heating and Cooling section.)
By late 2015, several energy storage management system vendors,
startups, major inverter makers (including Enphase (United
States) and SolarEdge (Israel)), grid vendors and battery makers
(e.g., Tesla, NEC and Panasonic) were involved in advancing
storage in the solar PV sector. 155 US thin film manufacturer First
Solar joined other solar companies – including SunPower and
i Perovskite solar cells include perovskite (crystal) structured compounds that are simple to manufacture and are expected to be relatively inexpensive to
produce. They have experienced a steep rate of efficiency improvement in laboratories over the past few years.
ii PERC is a technique that reflects solar rays back to the rear of the solar cell (rather than being absorbed into the module), thereby ensuring increased
efficiency as well as improved performance in low-light environments.
iii Modules with integrated alternating current (AC) inverters that enable them to generate grid-compatible AC power.
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