Page 463 - A Comprehensive Guide to Solar Energy Systems

476 A ComPREhEnSIVE GuIdE To SolAR EnERGy SySTEmS

increase in solar power deployment [1]. nevertheless, as the volumes are now much larger,
this represents a global solar revolution in terms of deployment. Currently, solar power
represents less than 1% of global electricity demand, but with such predicted deployment
of figures this would quickly grow [18].
The countries that would drive this wave of deployment are already using solar power;
these include China and India. These two countries are likely to dominate the global solar
markets in the future. India fully believes that it will be able to install 175 GW of solar by
the mid­2020s [12]. This type of initiative will see large amounts of the near 600 GW of solar
installed, which are needed to hit the forecast of SolarPower Europe. other regions are
also likely to come to the forefront. The middle East, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, the united Arab
Emirates, to name but a few, are all main lining solar power in the coming years [1]. The
Central Asian Republics are also expanding their solar interests—with uzbekistan looking
to build its electricity system largely on solar power and Kazakhstan also rapidly increas­
ing deployment [19]. Africa will likewise see a boom in solar power, from dakar to djibouti
and from Cape Town to Cairo, most African countries have huge need for energy and no
constraints from existing electricity systems. This is the perfect combination for low cost
solar power to come into its own in Africa. Thus, it can be expected that 100 GW will be
installed in this region in the coming few years [1]. Finally, latin America is also on the
verge of a big solar power push: Brazil, Chile, mexico, and many others are all embracing
their natural climatic advantages and the cost effectiveness of solar power.
Given the political environment in much of the world being very favorable to solar power,
it is possible to imagine that in just a few years’ time, more than 1 TW of solar will be installed.
As for the early pioneer markets, Europe, Japan, and the united States, it is not en­
tirely clear what will happen at this stage. All have huge potential, as mentioned earlier in
the chapter, Europe has many virgin solar power territories. It is highly plausible that as
many Eu countries scramble to meet their 2020 Renewable Energy directive targets, solar
power will experience a second wave in the Eu. This phenomenon may already be cur­
rently witnessed in countries, such as the netherlands, which is now holding large solar­
power auctions and has been identified as a country far behind on reaching its renewable
energy target for 2020 [20]. Poland, hungary, and Romania are all solar power dwarves at
the moment, yet have favorable natural conditions and may need to act to hit the 2020
targets. If this is a trend that is continued, it is not hard to imagine that Europe too could
pass the next milestone—200 GW—within the next few years. outside of the Eu, Turkey is
also stirring, although some of the domestic policies may limit the full potential of solar
power, it is not unimaginable that more than 5 GW will be installed in the coming 5 years,
which is the current government target [1]. The ukraine, Belarus, and Russia itself likewise
have solar programs that could further add significant numbers of solar deployment. This
is not to mention that the original Western European cradle countries can also continue
on a solar path with Germany and France committed to large auctions through to 2022.
In Japan and the united States, it is similarly clear that solar will continue to be deployed.
In Japan, the danger is that the government reverts to nuclear as the Fukishima disaster
diminishes in the minds of many people in Japan. Support schemes have already been