JEDDAH – The concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) market is forecast to double in 2012 and reach almost 90 MW or $325 million worldwide, according to a new report from IMS Research. The report predicts installations of CPV will grow rapidly over the next five years to reach almost 1.2 GW globally by 2016. IMS Research predicts that despite strong competition from conventional PV systems, there is still an attractive market for CPV in its target regions. “CPV suppliers are being forced to continually decrease costs in order to compete with the rapidly falling cost of PV systems. The technology is still relatively new and faces bankability issues,” said report co-author and IMS Research analyst Jemma Davies. The report forecasts CPV installations to capture an 18 percent share of its target market (ground mount systems with a direct normal irradiance DNI above 6kWh/m2/day) by 2016. High concentration PV (HCPV) systems are forecast to dominate the market in 2012; however, low concentration PV (LCPV) installations are forecast to accelerate over the next five years, capturing a 20 percent share of the CPV market by 2016. According to the report, the most attractive markets for CPV will be the US and Central America as well as Middle East and Africa, which will see CPV capturing up to a 27 percent share of the high DNI target markets by 2016. In particular, regions such as the Southwest US, Chile, Saudi Arabia and Morocco are predicted to see high growth, with conditions in these regions suited to CPV. Building on over twenty years of researching global electronics markets, and its expertise and existing coverage of the entire PV supply chain, IMS Research has carried out its first detailed analysis of the emerging market for this advanced PV technology. The report addresses all of the key questions concerning the future of CPV and the potential size of this market, providing statistics and detailed forecasts for CPV installations in 9 major regions including five-year and long-term forecasts. Meanwhile, spot prices for high density polyethylene (HDPE) in the Middle East rose Thursday after producers based in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) announced hikes in their offers for October shipments Wednesday, market sources said. According to market sources, offers for October-loading parcels to the GCC region were higher by $50-60/ton over last month, at $1,630-1,640/ton (€1,255-1,263/ton) DEL (delivered) GCC. Offers to the Saudi Arabian domestic market were at $1,590/ton DEL Saudi Arabia, an increase of $50/ton over the offers for September, sources said. – SG
