Germany's Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology has published a presentation on solar thermal markets and industry in the nation, noting that solar heating markets remained depressed in 2011.

Newly installed collector area came in at more than 9 million square meters in 2011, down significantly from the nearly 16 million square meters installed in 2008, but also down from 2006 and 2009 installation levels.

Flat plate collectors dominate market

By share, flat plate collectors still make up the vast majority of the market at 88%, with evacuated tube collectors making up another 11% of sales.

Overall, Germany had installed 10.7 GW-th of solar thermal capacity in 1.66 million systems by the end of 2011. The industry employed 20,000 workers through 350 component manufacturers and 14,500 integrators, with a total turnover of EUR 1.05 billion (USD 1.36 billion).

Lack of subsidies compared to PV

The analysis notes that unlike PV, there is no feed-in tariff for solar thermal. Instead, some types of solar thermal installations receive a subsidy of EUR 120 (USD 156) per square meter, which only applies to retrofitted systems and not systems on new construction.

The analysis also warns that given the falling cost of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems, PV-powered heat pumps may end up being cheaper than solar thermal systems, which represents a market danger to the technology.

Despite these concerns and limitations, both Germany's solar thermal market and its solar thermal industry remain leaders in Europe, particularly as regards development of new technology.

2012-11-30 | Courtesy: German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology | solarserver.com © Heindl Server GmbH

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