Which are the major solar thermal markets worldwide?

By far the largest solar thermal market in the world according to newly installed solar thermal capacity per year is China. In 2007, around 15.4 GWth (22 million m2) were sold in China, which was 77 % of the world global solar thermal market with a total of estimated 19.8 GWth. In Europe, Germany – the second biggest market in the world – is dominating. With its newly installed capacity of 658 MWth (940,000 m2) in 2007, the country reached a market share of 34 % within Europe. Position three is held by Turkey, a dynamic solar thermal market which is estimated at between 350 and 700 MWth. Besides these front-runners, India, Brazil, Israel, Austria, Japan, France, Italy, Spain and Australia are countries which reached a market volume of greater than 70 MWth (100,000 m2) in 2006. Further information:Solarenergie 2007, Study by the Swiss bank Sarasin, November 2007 (Only available in German) Solar thermal Markets in Europe, Study by European Solar Thermal Industry Federation (ESTIF), June 2008 (www.estif.org)