The market for plug-in solar devices in Germany is already much larger than previously thought. On behalf of the Berlin University of Applied Sciences (HTW Berlin) and the consumer advice center of North Rhine-Westphalia, EUPD Research has conducted a survey among suppliers of plug-in solar devices. The results allow an extrapolation of the market volume for the first time. According to the results, up to 128,000 plug-in solar devices with an output of up to 51 megawatts will be sold in 2020 and 2021 alone. All devices sold in Germany to date achieve an output of up to 66 megawatts.
Plug-in solar devices with an output of less than one kilowatt have so far been more of a niche market in solar energy. Nevertheless, there are more and more of these small photovoltaic systems, which promise easy handling during installation and use. For the first time, data on the supplier, market and sales structure was collected in a market survey. 58 of 156 suppliers of plug-in solar devices active in Germany took part in the survey.
The market shows a colorful picture of small and large suppliers. Among them are numerous young companies as well as established suppliers of photovoltaic equipment. All together, they paint the picture of a dynamically developing market.
“So far, a few larger suppliers have dominated the market, but at the same time, new suppliers and the many smaller companies are creating lively competition. Three quarters of the devices are sold directly to end users. Sales channels via retail chains have hardly been used to date. For market development, this means there is still a lot of room for improvement.”
- Prof. Dr. Barbara Praetorius from HTW Berlin
In addition to the market structure, the study also determines the total number of plug-in solar devices in Germany. Thomas Seltmann, expert for photovoltaics at the Verbraucherzentrale NRW and initiator of the survey, is positively surprised: “The result of the study is in the upper range of our previous estimates.” Nevertheless, he sees an urgent need for action: “The study makes it clear that politics and grid operators must finally remove further hurdles.”
There are still disputes about standard-compliant connection and unreasonable demands from network operators. “We urgently need to simplify this so that tenants and apartment users can finally use these power-generating household appliances easily and safely and thus actively participate in the energy transition,” says Seltmann. And Praetorius adds: “The reporting processes are also too complex for plug-in solar devices. Only ten to twenty percent are registered at all.
Another result of the study shows that, due to existing hurdles, the most promising applications such as balconies and terraces in multi-family houses are still hardly being developed: “We had already suspected that the balcony does not play the greatest role in the installation location of the solar module. Only every third device can be found there. Half of the devices are placed on the flat roof or in the garden with an elevation,” Praetorius says. “This suggests that tenants* are not yet well reached.” Who the users of plug-in solar devices currently are and what their preferences are is the subject of a currently ongoing user survey.
