MANUFACTURERS WITNESSED some margin recoveries in 2013 as well as significant market-share shifts on the supply side. SPV Market Research's Paula Mints digs deeper.

DESPITE TARIFFS, quotas, retroactive changes to FiTs, continued slowing of demand in Europe and rising prices in most regions, the PV industry is pressing on. Paula Mints discusses the trends.

SOLAR PV celebrations currently abound: Demand into the US market? Never better. Latin America? Multi-Gigawatts any second. India? Big market. But don't go celebrating yet, cautions SPV Market Research's Paula Mints.

AS THE PV industry continues to struggle with ever-decreasing prices, Paula Mints asks has the time come when positive margins and strong budgets for R&D are worth a higher price for PV modules?

AS THE year of pricing dangerously, 2012 looks set to go down in history as the first year the terrestrial photovoltaic industry saw a decline in shipment growth. Paula Mints reviews the year just gone and assesses what it means for the year ahead.

Farewell 2011, the solar industry will not miss you. Along with crashing prices, company failures, rapidly decreasing Feed-in Tariff (FiT) rates, 2011 left us with something even more tangible – close to 6 GWp of inventory on the demand and supply sides of the industry. This inventory will haunt the solar industry for some time, as it will be resold at ever-lower prices. This reselling will affect margins until at least the second quarter of 2012, likely longer. Meanwhile, expectations for lower prices are being cemented in the minds of politicians and energy consumers, meaning that the spectre of margin-less grid parity will haunt the solar industry for some time. Figure 1 over the page presents a snapshot of “Solar 2011” as we trundle into “Solar 2012”.

PAULA MINTS reports back from Solar Power International 2012 and SSX Ontario. And in her tale of two conferences, she finds the words of a classic Charles Dickens novel have more relevance today then ever…

As First Solar becomes the latest company to feel the European solar squeeze, closing its European manufacturing in the face of Germany's uncertainties, Paula Mints gives us a picture of solar PV industry dynamics.

THE GLOBAL solar industry continues to require subsidies, like rebates and feed-in tariffs (FiTs) to stimulate demand. Profit margins all along the value chain remain fragile, and solar continues to be a very small part of the global electricity supply.

REALITY CHECK alert: really big scandals happen in other industries, all the time. So we must all keep a sense of proportion about solar's current woes, believes Paula Mints.

DESCRIBING THE relationship between supply and demand in the solar photovoltaic (PV) industry is no mean feat – especially when the industry does not follow the rules. The solar PV industry is not as mature as some advocates believe, argues Paula Mints.

ALL SOLAR technologies face significant challenges going forward. To maintain growth, the industry needs lower component costs - and decisive action, argues Paula Mints.

THE GLOBAL SOLAR PHOTOVOLTAIC ELECTRICITY (PV) MARKET COUNTED AN ADDITIONAL INCREASE IN INSTALLED CAPACITY OF 7.2 GW IN 2009, REACHING A TOTAL CAPACITY OF OVER 22 GW WORLD-WIDE, ACCORDING TO THE LATEST FIGURES FROM THE EUROPEAN PHOTOVOLTAIC INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION (EPIA). WE LOOK AT WHICH COUNTRIES LED THE WAY, AND THEN ON PAGE 16 PAULA MINTS REVIEWS WHAT HAS SHIPPED SO FAR IN 2010.

WHAT ARE THE PROSPECTS FOR CSP DEVELOPMENT IN THE USA? PAULA MINTS REPORTS.

SOLAR (PV) SURPRISED THE MARKET IN 2009 WITH HEALTHY GROWTH AND PROMISING TECHNICAL DEVELOPMENTS. PAULA MINTS REFLECTS ON A BUOYANT YEAR AND ARGUES THAT THE INDUSTRY HAS A PROMISING FUTURE AS LONG AS IT LESSENS ITS RELIANCE ON INCENTIVES – AND INVESTORS REMAIN CONFIDENT.

THE END OF 2010 IS UPON US, AND WITH IT THE END OF AN EXTRAORDINARY DECADE FOR PV, REPORTS NAVIGANT's PAULA MINTS , WHO CONCENTRATES ON THE MARKETPLACE IN OUR SECOND AND FINAL PV ROUNDUP ARTICLE FOR THIS ISSUE.