Intersolar Europe: Renewable, Affordable, Future-proof – Photovoltaics Outpaces Nuclear and Fossil Energy Economically

The global growth of solar power generation shows no signs of slowing. Established markets are witnessing rapid deployment of photovoltaics (PV). In 2024, the global milestone of two terawatts of installed PV capacity was achieved. Solar generation capacity installed in the last two years exceeded that of the previous 68 years combined. A big reason for this development is the decreasing price of photovoltaic modules. To keep the momentum going and continue on the path towards a climate-neutral energy world, the leading players and talents of the solar industry will be meeting at Intersolar Europe once again this year. The world’s leading exhibition for the solar industry will take place from May 7–9, 2025 as part of The smarter E Europe, Europe’s largest alliance of exhibitions for the energy industry, at Messe München.

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According to the latest study by SolarPower Europe, a new record was broken in 2024 when 65.5 GW of new PV capacity was installed in Europe. With total capacity expected to reach 816 GW by 2030—nearly triple 2024’s 338 GW—we need the smart integration of solar energy into the energy system: The expansion of power grids, the flexibilization and digitalization of the infrastructure, and a considerable ramp-up of storage capacities are essential. At the same time, the electrification of transportation and heating must be accelerated.

Declining PV costs will continue to enhance competitiveness

Solar power is getting cheaper all the time. One essential factor is the price of photovoltaic modules. According to OPIS, the Dow Jones price information agency, the price for PV modules in Germany was between 6 and 13 euro cents per watt-peak (€ct/Wp), in China around 9 €ct/Wp, and in the United States between 27 and 28 €ct/Wp in November 2024. After many years of steady price decline, the share of module costs in the total PV system costs has dropped to below 30 percent. Inverters and BOS (balance of systems) components have also become markedly cheaper.

After many years of this market development and due to economies of scale, the solar energy production costs continue to decrease. According to Fraunhofer ISE, in 2024 the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) in Germany for large-scale PV plants was around 4 to 7 euro cents per kilowatt hour, for large-scale PV plants with battery storage, between 6 and 11 euro cents per kilowatt hour. Generating electricity with conventional power plants is much more expensive, with costs of around 15 to almost 33 euro cents per kilowatt hour. Nuclear energy is even more expensive with a cost of 49 euro cents per kilowatt hour.

Intersolar Europe – Strategists, innovators and pioneers meet in Munich

Intersolar Europe is more than a showcase for the solar industry. It brings together all the industry’s pioneers and visionaries: manufacturers, supplier and distributors, installers, service providers, project developers, planners and start-ups.

This year’s key topics include hybrid power plants, commercial PV systems, modern applications such as agricultural, floating and building-integrated PV, as well as smart combinations of PV, storage system, electromobility, heat pumps and energy management. It will provide up-to-date and comprehensive insights into the present and future of the fundamental transformation of the energy world.

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