Japanese Solar Inverter Market
The boom in the Japanese solar market has completely changed the competitive dynamics of the global solar inverter market. The Japanese solar inverter manufacturers led by Omron have entered the top 10 solar inverter rankings for 2013, displacing the European players. Their rise has been due to:
a) Strong growth of the Japanese solar market which crossed 6 GW in 2013
b) High entry barriers of the Japanese domestic market
c) The competence of Japanese solar inverter makers in the electronics industry.
While SMA Solar which is the big daddy of the solar inverter suppliers still remained the top dog, I think its position will not remain there for long as its mainstay European market has started to decline. From a 40% market share in 2009, the global marketshare has decreased to just 17%, with a 25% decline in revenues in 2013 as well as net losses. Sungrow which is the biggest Chinese solar inverter maker shipped more than 2 GW of solar inverters in Q413, making it the biggest player in that quarter. Sungrow’s large scale and growing expertise makes it a top contender for becoming the biggest player soon.
Electrical conglomerates such as ABB, Schnieder and GE are also in the solar inverter market and have used acquisitions to grow. However, the Chinese players are the one to watch. Though they are currently restricted to China, their low costs, growing scale and improving technology might make them significant players on the global stage. They can easily replicate their Chinese solar panel peers to become the biggest players in the world, pushing high cost European companies such as SMA, Kaco etc. into bankruptcy (aka Q-Cells).
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