Distributed Generation MarketSize and Trends

The solar PV segment is expected to hold the largest and fastest growing segment in the market.

The solar PV segment held the largest distributed generation market share in 2016 and is projected to retain its dominance throughout the forecast period. Due to the decreasing cost of the solar photo voltaic cells, an increase in the number of installations of the solar PVs has been observed globally. For instance, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), the U.S. installed 2,031 megawatts (MW) of solar PV in 2017 to reach 49.3 gigawatts (GW) of total installed capacity, enough to power 9.5 million American homes. Therefore, the distributed solar photovoltaic systems supply the electricity during the grid outages causing from the extreme weather or any emergencies. In addition to this, the distribution of large scale solar PV hybrid plants in several developing countries such as Kenya, Bangladesh, and Indonesia will propel the growth of distributed generation market in this segment.

Market Trends:

Distributed generation is power generation on-site at the point of consumption. Distributed generation benefits the large loads with the reserved additional capacity, provides the sufficient power for the entire loads and sufficient redundancy for the maintenance. In addition to this, the distributed energy generation offers better performance, increased reliability, and improved power quality which could positively influence the distributed generation market.

Increasing electricity consumption is the major factor driving the distributed generation market.

Increasing electricity consumption is a major driver for the growth of distributed generation market. For instance, according to the Electronic Industries Alliance (EIA) organization, the total world energy consumption rises from 575 quadrillion British thermal units (Btu) in 2015 to 736 quadrillion Btu in 2040, an increase of 28%. In addition to this, energy producers are increasingly inclined towards setting up energy production units close to the consumer base, in order to ensure uninterrupted power supply, minimal power wastage due to smaller power distribution and transmission lines, and in turn lowering requirement for extensive distribution lines and lowering costs associated with the same. This in turn has led to increase in growth of the distributed generation market.

Distributed Generation Market: Taxonomy

On basis of technology the distributed generation market is segmented into