In 2018, the EU solar market grew by 36%, with Germany as the leading player and the Netherlands as

According to SolarPower Europe's estimation, the installed capacity of solar power grid connection in the EU in 2018 was approximately 8GW, an increase of 36% compared to the 5.9GW grid connection in 2017. The total installed capacity of solar power generation in Europe is about 11GW, an increase of about 20% year-on-year.

Walburg Hemetsberger, CEO of SolarPower Europe, said, "It's great to see Europe once again embrace solar energy comprehensively. Solar energy is a popular energy source among EU citizens, both versatile and low-cost. With the continuous decline in costs, the long-term upward trend of solar energy development in Europe has just begun

Aur é lie Beauvais, Policy Director of SolarPower Europe, commented that we can foresee very strong demand in the European solar market over the next two years. One of the main reasons is the upcoming EU 2020 target, where many EU member states choose low-cost solar energy to fulfill their obligations. Beauvais added, "By abolishing trade measures for solar panels and developing a package of clean energy legislation, the EU has established a positive solar institutional framework, preparing for significant growth in solar energy. It is now up to EU member states to implement the correct national climate and energy plans to sustain this solar boom

The largest solar energy market in Europe in 2018 was Germany, with a new grid connected capacity of 2.96GW, an increase of 68% from the 1.76GW installed in 2017. Following closely is Türkiye, which installed 1.64GW in 2018, down 37% from the previous year, due to the decline in demand caused by the financial crisis. As a rising solar star, the Netherlands was rated as the third largest solar market in 2018, with an increase of approximately 1.4GW compared to 0.77 GW in 2017 and now entering the GW category.

Michael Schmela, Executive Advisor and Market Information Director at SolarPower Europe, said: "Despite the impressive 36% growth in the solar market of the 28 EU countries in 2018, the surge in demand from China at the end of last year led to a shortage of high-quality component supply in Europe, forcing some developers to delay completing projects until 2019. However, the good news is that 2019 will be a good year for European solar power generation