Solarbuzz Reports 46% Decline In UK Solar Installations

Solar photovoltaic (PV) installations within the UK during April to June 2013 (Q2'13) declined by 46% Q/Q as the ground-mount segment was impacted by the cut in Renewable Obligation Certificate (ROC) incentives on 1 April 2013, according to the latest market research by NPD Solarbuzz.

During the first six months of 2013 (1H'13), there were 106 new ground-mount solar PV installations in excess of 1 MW-DC capacity. There is currently in excess of 1.5 GW of ground-mount solar parks in the UK that have gone through successful project planning application stages and are awaiting build-out or final financing go-ahead.

Within this total, 60 of the solar PV parks had installed capacity in excess of 5 MW. Of these eight had installed capacity of 10 MW and above. The largest solar PV installation to date in the UK was also completed during 1H'13, the 34 MW solar PV project by Lark Energy at the former RAF Wymeswold Airfield in Leicestershire.

The southern regions of England (South East and South West) have dominated large-scale solar PV parks during 1H'13, with 67% of the total large-scale MW installed. The mid-eastern regions (East Midlands and East of England) accounted for 27%, with the remainder spread across the rest of England and Wales.

The largest ground-mount PV park in Scotland was completed during Q1'13 at the former Jewel & Esk College in Dalkeith.

Highlights of the final market sizing for solar PV in the UK for the first two quarters of 2013 are:

Solar PV demand during Q1'13 in the UK is confirmed at 520 MW.

Demand for Q2'13 was 282 MW, providing a 1H'13 total of 802 MW.

Cumulative solar PV installed in the UK at the end of June 2013 stands at 2.71 GW, with 50% residential, 22% from non-residential rooftop installations, and the remaining 28% from ground-mounted PV.

Year-to-date demand for 2013 has reached the gigawatt-level in the UK for first time, officially confirming the UK as a GW status end-market territory.

According to NPD Solarbuzz VP Finlay Colville, "the slowdown in the ground-mount segment in Q2 was also affected by the availability of Chinese modules coming into Europe, prior to the European Commission ruling at the start of August. The strength of the ground-mount pipeline however will ensure that the UK retains a health top-10 market ranking for 2013 and beyond."