The European solar thermal system market grew spectacularly in 2008 with over 4.6 million m2 installed, compared to less than 3.1 million m2 in 2007. It is the first time that the symbolic 4 million m2 has been exceeded and was largely due to the doubling of the German market, although strong growth in Southern Europe also played a vital part. EurObserv'ER estimates that around 50,000 jobs have been created in the European solar thermal industry during 2008, while turnover has exceeded €3,000 million. Although 2009 is looking uncertain, the medium and long-term growth prospects for the solar thermal market are still very positive.
The barometer indicates that if market growth in terms of surface area sold is converted into installed thermal energy, taking into account the effect of decommissioning old systems, estimated solar thermal capacity in service in the EU amounted to 19,982.7 MWth at the end of 2008. In 2007, this figure was 16,818.5 MWth, 18.8% lower than in 2008. Germany has the highest total installed capacity with over 11.3 million m2 of capacity in service, followed by Austria (4 million m2) and Greece (3.9 million m2). Nevertheless, after Germany – which experienced spectacular growth of 100% during 2008 – Spain, Italy and France have all installed the most capacity during 2008.
Total solar thermal capacity per capita varies considerably across the EU. Cyprus leads the way, with 843 m2 per 1,000 inhabitants, 1.8 times more than Austria (476 m2 per 1,000 inhabitants) and 2.4 more than Greece (345 m2 per 1,000 inhabitants). However, Austria is ranked first in continental Europe, with 3.5 times more surface area of collectors per capita than Germany, ranked fourth.
Since 1998, The EurObserv'ER barometer sponsored by the European Union through the Intelligent Energy - Europe programme, measures the progress made by renewable energies in each sector and in each Member State of the European Union in an as up-to-date way as possible (with figures less than 12 months old). EurObserv'ER produces a series of figure-backed indicators covering energetic, technological and economic dimensions. The growing public interest in renewables is mirrored in the number of times the barometers have been downloaded per annum, rising from under 10,000 in 2003 to over 80,000 last year according to statistics on the EurObserv'ER website. It is expected that the next barometer to be published will focus on biofuels.
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