Perspectives on future large-scale manufacturing of PV in Europe

The growing global PV market continues to present substantial business opportunities for Europe. The question is now: what role could or should European manufacturing industry play in these developments? The European Photovoltaic Technology Platform's position paper released at the end of 2013 makes a clear case for re-launching Europe's PV manufacturing sector. Several groups are actively prompting plans and seeking funding for such developments, for both crystalline silicon and thin film technologies. This report summarises information on the range of factors that may influence the prospects for realising these ambitions.