The global solar PV industry is headed into a five-year growth spurt that will put it on track for cumulative installed capacity of 500 gigawatts (GW) by 2018, according to the latest NPD Solarbuzz Marketbuzz report.

The report, released on Thursday, predicts a huge 100GW of solar PV deployment will be targeted in 2018 – a boom in end-market growth that is projected to increase annual PV module revenues to $50 billion in that same year.

In January, leading investment house Deutsche Bank also dramatically lifted its near-term demand forecasts for the global solar industry, predicting that 46GW of PV would be installed across the world in 2014, and 56GW in 2015.

Last year, PV developers installed 37.5GW of panels worldwide – a 22 per cent increase on 2012, despite the lingering hangover of global overcapacity and declining operating margins. According to data compiled by Bloomberg, that figure may increase as much as 39 per cent this year, as surging demand in China helps to soak up the glut.

via Global solar PV market set to reach 500GW by 2018 : Renew Economy.