Floating Solar Panels Market Size & Share Analysis - Trends, Drivers, Competitive Landscape, and Forecasts (2024-2030)

Floating Solar Panels Market Trends & Drivers

• The market is still at a nascent stage, with extremely little penetration across the globe. Currently, only few countries, such as Japan, China, India, the U.S., Australia, and Brazil, have initiated projects to install floating solar power plants. The high efficiency and potential of this technology are attracting various countries to initiate related projects, along with ground-mounted PV projects. The large, unexplored market worldwide is expected to create abundant growth opportunities for the providers of such equipment during the forecast period.
• The global floating solar panels space is currently occupied by few players, which is why the lack of equipment providers in the market is creating opportunities for the existing conventional solar panel manufacturers and new companies. This technology is widely appreciated for its power generation efficiency and feasibility. Therefore, different governments across the globe are initiating projects for the installation of these panels, which would attract the major players in the conventional solar energy industry to exploit the market’s potential.
• Conventional solar energy generation requires vast land for the installation of PV plants, which increases the upfront cost. This acts as the major challenge in the growth of the global solar panels market. In order to overcome this challenge, in recent times, several countries have started adopting floating solar panels, which eliminate the requirement for land acquisition.

Floating Solar Panels Market Analysis

Floating PV Is Dominating Market

Floating PV systems held the larger revenue share, of 93%, in 2022, as installing PV plants in waterbodies helps overcome the limitations of traditional PV sites. It allows for the most-efficient land use, tidal management, creation of an aesthetically pleasing environment, and increase in power generation. They are also cost-effective in comparison to traditional mounting-based PV systems, and they make maximum use of water’s cooling effect to generate higher energy.

There is an enormous potential for expansion in these photovoltaic power generation. Hydropower reservoirs alone encompass more than 250 thousand square kilometers throughout the world, enabling 2.5 times as much floating solar capacity as the entire underlying hydropower capacity. Combining hydropower generation with floating solar panels has the potential to produce remarkable outcomes.

Stationary Panels Are Preferred

Stationary panels held the larger share, of 82%, in 2022. On a lake, dam reservoir, or another waterbody, it is relatively easy to install these panels. Moreover, serving as a shade above the body of water, these panels slow down the evaporation of the water. Additionally, installing a stationary floating PV plant is more economical than a solar-tracking floating plant, since the former type of panels are made of low-cost, high-strength plastic. Due to the rising expenses on the solar tracking technology's upkeep, the spending on the production and installation of stationary variants in emerging economies is set to boost the demand for them in the coming years.

Still, the solar-tracking category is expected to grow at the higher CAGR during the forecast period. Due to the longer direct exposure to the sun's rays, these variants produce more electricity than their stationary counterparts. Depending on where the tracking system is located, this increase could range from 10 to 25%. Solar trackers come in a variety of forms, including single-axis and dual-axis, both of which can be the ideal fit for a particular jobsite.

The size of the installation, local weather, latitude, and electricity needs are all significant factors that decide what kind of solar tracker is appropriate for a particular installation. Solar trackers are the ideal option for maximizing land use as they produce more electricity from about the same space as fixed-tilt systems.

Geographical Analysis

The APAC region is the largest across the globe in 2022. The market is expected to witness rapid growth primarily on account of the government initiatives promoting the usage of floating solar panels in the region.

Additionally, the stringent environmental regulations, along with the rising low-cost energy demand, are promoting the growth of the market. The installation of ground-based PV systems requires large landmasses; hence, land acquisition increases the cost of power. The available land in most Asian countries is quite less, owing to their high population densities. For instance, India, South Korea, the Philippines, and Japan have a population density of 464 per square km, 527 per square km, 368 per square km, and 347 per square km, respectively.

Hence, in order to reduce the dependence on land acquisition for ground-based solar systems, many Asian countries have already started adopting the floating PV technology. Additionally, several countries have announced projects to increase their floating solar capacity, which are likely to begin operations in the coming years. Furthermore, the rapid popularity of the technology and abundance of waterbodies (ponds, lakes, rivers, waste waterbodies, and industrial effluent ponds) are supporting the region’s plans to increase the floating PV capacity. In turn, this will help overcome the hurdles in reaching the set targets of the overall solar capacity during the forecast period.

Moreover, Europe held the second-largest share in 2022. The European region is projected to showcase strong growth in the future on account of the increasing investments by the major players for the development of these plants in the region. The majority of the European nations lack easily available land to build massive solar farms. Furthermore, the price of constructing such plants is significantly higher, particularly in the Netherlands, where land is expensive. Due to its easy access to existing electrical infrastructure, floating solar also entails lower grid connection costs.

Moreover, the stringent environmental regulations, increasing compliance for clean electricity, and technological advancements in the floating solar power niche are fueling the growth of the market in Europe.

The largest floating solar park in Europe, with a capacity of 27.4 MW, started operating on a quarry lake in the Netherlands last spring. A number of additional plants in the double-MW range have been built in the region lately, especially in France and the U.K.

Floating PV projects with a combined capacity of about 100 MW have been put into place in Europe by BayWa r.e. alone. Further, in the coming years, there are plans to commission such projects with a combined capacity of more over 800 MW in Greece, on artificial waterbodies, such as reservoirs, Similarly, in Germany, where floating PV is in trend, solar project of 1.5 MW is currently undergoing its initial phase of construction on a quarry lake in Rhineland–Palatinate.

Report Breakdown

Based on Type

• Stationary
• Solar Tracking

Based on Location

• Onshore
• Offshore

Based on Technology

• PV
• CSP

Geographical Analysis

• North America
  • U.S.
  • Canada
• Europe
  • France
  • Germany
  • Italy
  • Belgium
  • U.K.
  • Netherlands
• Asia-Pacific
  • China
  • India
  • Japan
  • South Korea
  • Taiwan
  • Vietnam
• ROW (Rest of World)
  • Israel
  • Brazil

Top Floating Solar Panel Manufacturers