Switzerland: Comprehensive Market Survey of Swissolar
2008 was a very good year for the solar thermal market in Switzerland: The figure shows the annually sold collector area of different technologies. Source: Swissolar market studies Solar Energy 2005 to 2007
Swissolar, the solar energy association of Switzerland, surprises us once more with a very comprehensive market study of the year 2008. From the 275 Swiss solar companies, which participated in the survey, 143 solar thermal companies and 56 photovoltaic companies answered the sent-out questionnaire. The survey’s most important conclusion: 2008 was a very good year for the solar thermal market in Switzerland.
Sales of flat plate collectors within the country amounted to 104,040 m2, an increase of 65 % compared to the previous year. The vacuum tube market developed even faster, albeit starting from a lower level. The sold collector area grew from 2,554 m2 in 2007 to 8,793 m2 in 2008. The sector of unglazed collectors rather stagnated.
2008 was the first year, in which vacuum tube collectors were imported: 2,708 m2. Swiss manufacturers in this segment produced a total of 27,467 m2 in vacuum tube collectors and reached a plus of 47 % compared to 2007. Flat plate producers reported an output of 173,097 m2 – an increase by 43 %.
Combi systems, which supply energy for hot water and space heating, enjoy a large market share in Switzerland’s residential sector. According to Swisssolar the big jump within the sector of multi family houses and commercial systems for hot water is responsible for the successful market development. Some ups and downs in the following table are caused by imprecisely filled in questionnaires.
| Number of Systems 2006 | Number of Systems 2007 | Number of Systems 2008 | |
| Single Family Homes Hot Water | 2,397 | 3,833 | 6,441 |
| Single Family Homes Hot Water and Heating | 1,366 | 1,843 | 2,948 |
| Multi Family Homes Hot Water | 550 | 584 | 1,438 |
| Multi Family Homes Hot Water and Heating | 147 | 225 | 137 |
| Commercial Hot Water | 113 | 6 | 25 |
| Commercial Hot Water and Heating | 2 | 9 | 3 |
| Agriculture Hot Water | 2 | 0 | 15 |
| Agriculture Hot Water and Heating | 3 | 6 | 21 |
| Offices and Public Services Hot Water | 18 | 62 | 77 |
| Offices and Public Services Hot Water and Heating | 0 | 15 | 9 |
Number of systems with flat plate collectors and vacuum tube collectors regarding different application areas.
Source: Swissolar’s 2008 market study
The study is available in a German and a French version (see documents attached).
More Information:
http://www.swissolar.ch/
Text was written by communication specialist Hanna Schober based in South Africa. Schober@solrico.com
