Leading the way, says Wiki-Solar, which classes utility-scale projects at 10 MW or over, are U.S.- and European-based companies, with 7 of the top 10 EPC contractors based in Germany.
"German contractors have maintained a strong position, even as the focus has switched from Germany and other European markets," states Wiki-Solars Philip Wolfe, who adds, "Many have set up subsidiaries in the USA and other growing markets like India, South Africa and South America."
The top 10 EPC contractors in 2012, according to Wiki-Solar, are: Enerparc (607 MWp); Juwi Solar (296 MWp); First Solar (226 MWp); Sunselex (189 MWp); Hanwha Q.Cells (174 MWp); Saferay (160 MWp); GP Joule (131 MWp); Quanta Power Generation (116 MWp); Belectric (112 MWp); and Activ Solar 106 MWp).
Wiki-Solar goes on to say that independent and regional utilities appear to adopt solar generation before others. It lists San Diego Gas & Electric, Pacific Gas & Electric, NV Energy, Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand and Ontario Power as the top 5 power off-takers.
Meanwhile, the top 5 inverter suppliers to photovoltaic projects are said to be: SMA; Schneider Electric; PowerOne; Danfoss; and Refusol. Wiki-Solar acknowledges, however, that not all projects list their inverter suppliers, meaning it is difficult to obtain accurate information.
This content is protected by copyright and may not be reused. If you want to cooperate with us and would like to reuse some of our content, please contact: editors@pv-magazine.com.
By submitting this form you agree to pv magazine using your data for the purposes of publishing your comment.
Your personal data will only be disclosed or otherwise transmitted to third parties for the purposes of spam filtering or if this is necessary for technical maintenance of the website. Any other transfer to third parties will not take place unless this is justified on the basis of applicable data protection regulations or if pv magazine is legally obliged to do so.
You may revoke this consent at any time with effect for the future, in which case your personal data will be deleted immediately. Otherwise, your data will be deleted if pv magazine has processed your request or the purpose of data storage is fulfilled.
Further information on data privacy can be found in our Data Protection Policy.