The additional installed photovoltaic output rose by 43 per cent over the previous year to a new record of 683 megawatts. The total installed output at the end of the year was 3.65 gigawatts. Accordingly, annual production was 2.8 terawatt hours, which corresponds to the annual consumption of 900,000 households with four persons. The share of solar power production in Switzerland's electricity consumption was 4.9 per cent in 2021; it is now just under six per cent. This is the result of the latest solar energy statistics from the Swiss Federal Office of Energy SFOE.
There are many reasons for the photovoltaic boom
Increased growth compared to the previous year could be observed in all segment sizes and application areas. Growth was particularly high for systems on industrial and commercial buildings (53 per cent more), on single-family homes (60 per cent more) and for large systems with an output of more than one megawatt. The average newly built system produced 25.3 kilowatts, compared to 24.5 kilowatts in 2020.
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The trend towards larger systems is evident in all market segments. "Never before has it been so obvious to install a solar system: It supplies the electricity for electromobility and heat pumps, contributes to the security of supply and protects against the record high electricity prices," comments Swissolar CEO David Stickelberger. High electricity prices, booming electromobility and the need for a crisis-proof energy supply continue to drive demand.
Battery storage also increasingly popular
The number of newly installed battery storage systems grew by a factor of 2.5 compared to the previous year: around one in three new photovoltaic systems on a single-family home was now combined with a battery storage system. Probably often with the intention of protecting against a power outage. The total installed storage capacity at the end of 2021 was 157 megawatt hours. Enough to supply 15,000 households with electricity for a day. (nhp/mfo)
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