The global inverter market is assuming a greater profile along the solar PV supply chain with advances in inverter technology promising more sophisticated grid support and system optimization for residential installations up to utilityscale, multi-MW projects. Inverter technology development is attracting and will continue to attract greater attention as gains in long-term project generation and reliability become crucial to achieve project bankability given forecasted cuts in global solar incentives (i.e., FiTs) and competitive PPA modeling.

Along with the industry’s increasing technology and bankability requirements, leading EU-based inverter suppliers are seeing global demand shift away from their domestic markets toward major PV growth markets in North America and Asia. In the coming year, this expansion of global demand will lead to increased competition and slower growth for inverter incumbents who do not diversify from their domestic base while providing new supply opportunities to US- and Asia-based inverter manufacturers and to global energy conglomerates leveraging parallel power inversion competencies.

The latest analysis on the global inverter market covers the industry from end-to-end, exploring the technology’s increasing importance in the functionality of PV power delivery. The report also dissects inverter deployment across market segment, as micro-inverter technologies begin to capture greater share of residential and commercial installations. In addition, the report presents in detail the competitive dynamics that global inverter manufacturers will encounter as PV demand decentralizes and regional supply factors influence global market share.

VALUE-ADDED ELEMENTS:

• Review of recent inverter-based technology gains, including reactive voltage support, low voltage/fault ride-through, power ramp and frequency controls
• Competitive analysis of global PV market dynamics driving inverter demand
• Global demand forecasts by country and market segment through 2015
• Examination of the business case for micro-inverters
• Over 40 company profiles of leading and emerging manufacturers globally

QUESTIONS FOR COMPETITIVE DECISION-MAKING:

• As global solar demand spreads and inverter market share splinters, what will the competitive landscape look like?
• What are the global market shares of major inverter manufacturers?
• Can micro-inverters compete and earn widespread adoption across all market segments?
• Which competitive strategies are manufacturers pursuing?

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1 Introduction
1.1 Report Structure

2 Inverter Technology
2.1 Inverter Functionality and Features
2.1.1 Beyond the Module
2.1.2 Inside the Inverter
2.1.3 DC-to-AC Conversion
2.1.4 Maximum Power Point Tracking
2.1.4.1 Inverter Sizing and Selection
2.1.4.2 Power Optimization Topologies
2.1.4.3 Single Point MPPT
2.1.4.4 Multiple MPPT-Single Enclosure (MM-SE)
2.1.4.5 Multiple Inversion
2.1.4.6 Distributed Inversion
2.1.4.7 Module level optimization
2.1.4.8 Super-Distributed “Nano” MPPT/Inversion
2.1.5 Galvanic Isolation

3 Trends in Inverter Components, Features, and Functionality
3.1.1 New Levels of Grid Interactivity
3.1.1.1 Low Voltage/Fault Ride-Through
3.1.1.2 Reactive Voltage Support
3.1.1.3 Power Ramp Control
3.1.1.4 Active Power/Frequency Control
3.1.1.5 Dispatchability
3.1.1.6 Advanced Grid Monitoring
3.1.2 Solar as a Service: Increased Monitoring and Uptime Guarantees
3.1.3 Components and Design
3.1.3.1 High Efficiency through SiC Components
3.1.3.2 Pre-Engineered Systems
3.1.4 Disruptive Power Optimization Technology
3.1.4.1 Increased Solar Harvest
3.1.4.2 Partial Shading Mitigation
3.1.4.3 Design Flexibility
3.1.4.4 Labor Reduction
3.1.4.5 Safety
3.1.4.6 AC and Smart Modules
3.1.5 Can Micro-Inverters Compete?
3.1.5.1 Distributed MPPT at the Multi-Megawatt Scale
3.1.6 Technology and Trends Winners and Losers

4 Competitive Demand Drivers and Achieving Bankability
4.1 The Inverter Decision-Making Process
4.2 Demand Drivers
4.2.1 Reliability
4.2.2 Efficiency
4.2.3 The Early Mover Advantage
4.2.4 The Certification Wall
4.2.5 Bankability
4.2.6 Efficiency, Uptime, and Performance Benefits

5 Global Inverter Supply and Competitive Dynamics
5.1 Global Leaders
5.2 Emerging Region Suppliers
5.2.1 North America
5.2.1.1 The U.S. Landscape
5.2.1.2 Ontario
5.2.2 Japan
5.2.3 Low-Cost Asia
5.3 Large Conglomerates
5.4 Micro-Inverter and Distributed Optimization
5.5 Inverter Manufacturing Price and Cost
5.5.1 Inverter Cost Structure
5.6 Global Inverter Supply (Capacity and Production)
5.6.1 Global Supply Methodology
5.6.2 Production Capacity and Shipments
5.6.3 Market Shares

6 Global Inverter Demand
6.1 Supply - Demand Dynamics
6.2 Global PV Demand
6.3 Global PV Demand by Market Segment
6.4 European Dominance in PV
6.4.1 Germany
6.4.2 Italy
6.5 The Uptick in North American Interest
6.5.1 United States of America
6.5.2 Canada
6.6 Breaking Into Asian Strongholds
6.6.1 Japan
6.6.2 China
6.7 Emerging Markets and the Rest of the World

7 Company Profiles

LIST OF FIGURES

2 Inverter Technology
Typical PV System Hardware
System Cost Breakdown for Blended U.S. PV Installations, 2009
Inside Utility-Scale Inverter Components
TI UCC 28950: Popular Micro-Controller Utilized by Inverter Manufacturers
Insulated Bipolar Gate Transistors (IGBTs)
Electrolytic Capacitors
Magnetic Chokes
String Inverter Board
AC Versus DC Electricity Waveforms
Typical IGBT H-Bridge configuration for inverters
PV Current-Voltage (IV) Curve
Points of Energy Harvest Loss in PV Systems
Single MPPT Topology
Multiple MPPT-Single Enclosure Topology
Modular PV Inverter for Use in Utility-Scale Applications
Modular PV Inverter Cycling Based on Insolation
Array of String Inverters
Required Wire Sizes for 2 MW Square Array With Centrally-Located Inverter
Multiple 1 MW Inverter Stations Located Within Array Footprint
Inter-Row Shading in Multi-MW PV Plants
String Inverters in Large-scale Ground Mount Array Configuration
String Level MPPT PV System Topology
Micro-Inverter
Micro-Inverter System Diagram
Distributed DC Optimization PV System Diagram
Sample Players by MPPT Topologies
Cost Structure of Residential PV Inverters
Galvanic Isolation Through Transformer Stage Circuit Diagram

3 Trends in Inverter Components, Features, and Functionality
Single Day for PV System in Springerville, AZ
Grid Support Standards for Various Countries
German BDEW Requirements for Low Voltage Ride-Through
Unity, Leading and Lagging Voltage
Utility Capacitor Bank for 180 MVAR of Reactive Power Injection
PG&E Vaca Dixon Single Day Power Output
Power Ramp Behavior in PV Inverters
German BDEW Standards for Frequency Control
Forecasted Cost Roadmap for SiC JFET versus Si-based Technology
Turnkey Utility Power Plants
Micro-Inverter and Distributed Optimization Taxonomy
Micro-Inverter Versus Central Inverter Failures in Field
Module Manufacturers With Development Partnerships With Distributed Optimizers
Distributed Optimization System Efficiency Benefits
Partial Cloud Cover in Utility-Scale Applications
Series-based DC Optimization in Utility-Scale Systems
Three-Phase Wye Output Micro-Inverters in Utility-Scale Systems
Petra Solar Utility Pole System

4 Competitive Demand Drivers and Achieving Bankability
Failure Rates by Inverter Vendor Type
TEP Springerville 5 MW PV Unscheduled Maintenance by Component
PV System Failure Cost by Root Component
System Tickets in SunEdison Fleet by ujOccurrence, 2008-2010
Failure Rates by Inverter Vendor Type
PV Inverter Failure by Component
PV Inverter Failure by Component Source
PV System Failures by Source of Failure
Typical Inverter Efficiency Curve Versus Percent Load
Effect of Inverter Cost and Performance on LCO E for 1 MW PV System

5 Global Inverter Supply and Competitive Dynamics
Global PV Inverter Taxonomy
U.S. Utility Market Growth, 2009-2015E
U.S. PV Inverter Production Capacity and Production
Ontario PV Inverter Manufacturing Capacity by Type
Inverter Manufacturing in Ontario
Leading Asian PV Inverter Suppliers, 2010
China Golden Sun Program Shortlist of Inverter Suppliers
Mergers and Acquisitions in the PV Inverter Space in 2010
Micro-Inverter and Distributed Optimization Taxonomy
Inverter Industry Purchasing Power of Semiconductors
Typical Cost Structure of Residential PV Inverters
Typical Cost Structure of Utility-Scale PV Inverters
Price Forecast for PV Inverters
Global PV Inverter Supply Capacity, Production Versus Demand, 2009-2011
Global Inverter Shipments and Blended ASPs
Global Market Share of Top 10 Inverter Companies, 2009
Global Market Share of Top 10 Inverter Companies, 2010
Global Inverter Shipments for Top 10 Suppliers and Manufacturers, 2010
Global Market Share by Inverter Supplier Tier, 2009-2013E
Global Inverter Shipments by Top Manufacturers, 2011
Global Inverter Shipments by Inverter Supplier Tier, 2009-2013E
Micro-Inverter and Distributed Optimization Capacity and Shipments, 2009-2015E
Distributed Optimization Demand in California Solar Initiative Program 2009-Q1 2011

6 Global Inverter Demand
Typical PV System Cost Breakdown for Europe
Inverter Spot Market Pricing in 2010
Optimal PV Inverter Capacity Versus PV Plant Capacity by Geographic Location
Global PV Demand, 2008-2015
Regional Market Share by Demand, 2008-2015
Global Inverter Market Value, Supply and Demand, 2009-2015E
Germany Pre-FIT Demand Booms
Global PV Demand Share by Market Segment, 2009-2015E
Global PV Demand by Market Segment, 2009-2015E
European PV Demand by Country, 2008-2015E
Characteristics of a Gold Rush Market
Installed Capacity by Month and Market Segment, Germany, 2010
Germany Feed-In Tariff Structure, 2010-2011
PV Demand in Germany by Market Segment, 2011
German PV Demand Forecast by System Size, 2009-2015
Italian Feed-In Tariff Schedule
Italian PV Demand Forecast by System Size, 2009-2015
U.S. PV Installations and Global Market Share, 2005-2010
Annual Installed PV Capacity by Market Segment, 2005-2010
U.S. PV Demand by Market Segment, 2005-2010
U.S. PV Demand by State and Market Segment
U.S. PV Demand Forecast by Market Segment, 2009-2015
Ontario Feed-In Tariff Program Contract Queue
Canadian PV Demand Forecast, 2009-2015
PV Demand in Asia Forecast by Country, 2009-2015
Japanese PV Demand Forecast by Market Segment, 2009-2015
Chinese PV Demand Forecast, 2009-2015
PV Demand Forecast in the Rest of the World, 2009-2015