FUKUOKA, Japan, Dec. 3 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ --
Days before world leaders gather in Bali to discuss a post-Kyoto agreement, Germany will display its balancing of the environment and the economy at the 17th Photovoltaic Science and Engineering Conference (PVSEC-17) in Fukuoka, Japan. The event brings together international industry leaders, researchers, and journalists from Dec. 3-7, 2007 and is a perfect platform for Germany to display how it is using PV as one part of a broad strategy to reduce carbon emissions while continuing economic growth.
Germany is the world's largest PV market. It will add 1.5 gigawatts (GW) of installed PV capacity in 2007-an improvement over 2006 when it added 1.15 GW. PV production is increasing because Germany is creating the conditions to make PV investments profitable.
For example, Germany's Renewable Energies Act (or EEG) sets a "feed-in tariff," above the market price, to be paid to producers of renewable energy when it is sold to utility companies. The law provides an incentive for property owners to purchase renewable energy equipment, thus creating a market for international investors that saw sales of EUR3.7 billion in 2006.
International PV companies are also drawn to Germany by its network of producers, suppliers, and research institutes, such as the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems in Freiburg, Germany. Additionally, investment incentives in eastern Germany, which sometimes cover up to 50% of investment costs, make this region popular for PV investments.
Therefore, many international PV players have established a presence in Germany, such as Nanosolar, Signet Solar, First Solar, and ARISE.
"PV is a growing and dynamic industry in Germany. As the country works to reduce fossil fuel consumption, we expect the importance of PV in Germany to increase, making the country even more attractive for international investors than it is today," notes Nikolai Dobrott, Director of Renewable Energies and Resources at Invest in Germany.
Dobrott's colleague, David Wortmann, Invest in Germany's Director for Northeast Asia, will be giving a speech at PVSEC-17 entitled, "Germany -- the number one location for business in the field of solar energy."
Invest in Germany is the inward investment promotion agency of the Federal Republic of Germany. It provides investors with comprehensive support from site selection to the implementation of investment decisions.
