Originally published on Solar Love.
The global solar industry has been seeing exponential growth in recent years, and that’s expected to continue. After hitting about 178 GW of solar PV power capacity by the end of 2014, global solar PV capacity is expected to hit 200 GW shortly.
That’s according to German solar association BSW-Solar, anyhow. It projects that 22 GW of solar PV capacity was added worldwide in the first half of 2015, and expects 50 GW will be added in total this year. (Note that GTM Research projects 55 GW will be added, and other solar market research firms are in the general vicinity as well.)
Within the next 4 years, BSW-Solar expects the total global solar PV capacity will more than double, reaching at least 400 GW.
The markets most driving solar PV growth these days are China, Japan, the USA, and India. However, the good news is that solar PV is growing all across the world, as it has become more and more competitive very quickly. In a quickly growing number of places, solar power is the cheapest option for homeowners, businesses, governments, and societies.
Related: Solar Energy & Solar Power Facts
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