Decreasing PV system prices and rising electricity costs make self-consumption solutions increasingly attractive. EUPD Research’s EndCustomer Monitor 10.0 reveals: More PV system owners are seeking to optimize self-consumption and are planning to purchase electric vehicles and electricity-based heating systems.
In line with the overall market development, Germany has witnessed a steady growth of new, small-sized photovoltaic installations since 2015. Following record levels in the first six months of 2020, EUPD Research forecasts a further market growth for the second half of 2020, based on a recent analysis. In total, the Bonn-based market and economic researcher expects 108,000 small-sized PV systems under 10 kilowatts in 2020, which will amount to an installed capacity of 801 megawatts. This will mean that the year’s new installations in this segment will be surpassing the previous record of 2011 with 760 megawatts.
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An in-depth analysis of the installation figures of the first half of the year shows an above-average year-on-year growth in the segment of small-sized PV systems (7-10 kilowatts) of 153 per cent. This confirms the long-term trend in the small-sized system segment for increasingly larger solar systems. While in 2019 the average size of PV systems under 10 kilowatts was 7.35 kilowatts, the systems installed in the first half of 2020 were 7.48 kilowatts on average.
PV market as driver for ecological transformation
For the 10th time running, EUPD Research will publish the EndCustomer Monitor – a study in which PV system owners and those planning to invest in a solar system were surveyed. In the context of decreasing feed-in tariffs and rising electricity costs, the strongly increased importance of self-consumption with respect to solar electricity makes up a central theme of the research series. Accordingly, the latest analysis shows that owners of newer PV installations actively take action to increase self-consumption of produced solar electricity from their own PV plant.
In 2020, the majority of owners of new PV systems – 82 per cent – align the usage of household appliances with the availability of solar electricity. While it does not necessarily require larger investments, 41 per cent count on battery storage solutions to increase their self-consumption rates. More than one quarter of the PV buyers in 2020 already own, or are planning to purchase an electric vehicle. The additional electricity consumption of electric vehicles of about 2,500-4,000 kilowatt hours increase self-consumption significantly and pays off for the bottom line at the same time. The most recent electricity price for residential households of about 31 euro cents per kilowatt hour compares with the electricity generation costs of less than 10 euro cents for a new solar installation. About one fifth of the PV system owners in 2020 focus on smart home applications and the purchase of heat pumps for electricity-based heating in order to maximize self-consumption.
In its 10th edition of the EndCustomer Monitor, EUPD Research analyzes the purchase behaviour of PV system owners and those planning to invest in solar PV, as well as the latest trends. Topics such as market awareness, brand choice, recommendation of PV modules, inverters and battery storage are once again key components of the study. This year, the study focuses on electric mobility and battery storage. The report will be published at the end of August. (mfo)
