The year 2020 has certainly been a challenging one for most industries operating across the globe due to the widespread impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the global solar market has successfully weathered the pandemic-induced storm and has been on a solid growth trajectory.
According to a report by the International Energy Agency (IEA), in October 2020, shares of solar companies worldwide more than doubled in value from the December 2019 levels.
What Boosted Solar Market Growth in 2020?
A number of reasons were instrumental in driving the solar markets in nations such as the United States, China, Brazil, Germany and Spain throughout the year.
The rise in demand for sustainable energy solutions, improved module efficiency driven by rapidly declining costs for solar panel installations, expansion of power grids and large-scale deployment of solar energy solutions have certainly amplified growth on a global scale. Further, favorable government initiatives, and strong and federal policies, which include tax incentives to encourage installation, boosted global solar market growth.
Notably, per
Wood Mackenzie’s recent market outlook
, the global solar photovoltaic (PV) installations are expected to hit 115 gigawatts (GWdc) by the end of 2020, which suggests 5% growth over the total global installations made in 2019.
Global Solar Market Prospects in 2021
For 2021, the global solar PV panel demand is expected to grow approximately 15% and is poised to reach a total capacity of 143.7 GW, per a
Taiwanese market research company, PV Infolink
. The growth is primarily driven by the completion of projects to take place next year that were delayed by the pandemic.
In particular China, the United States, India and Europe will lead solar growth, together representing more than 70% of the global market demand.
5 Solar Stocks That Have Rallied So Far in 2020
Considering solar growth prospects in 2021, one can keep the following five stocks in their watchlist, each of which has seen share price growth of more than 200% in 2020 so far.
Enphase Energy
’s
ENPH
products are deployed in more than 130 countries and it shipped more than 30 million microinverters worldwide at the end of the third quarter. Its shares have gained 525.8% year to date, while the Zacks Consensus Estimate for its 2021 earnings moved up 2.8% over the past 60 days. It has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see
the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here
.
ReneSola
SOL
, a Zacks Rank #3 company, is currently expanding business in the international markets and had 188.7 megawatts (MW) of rooftop projects in operation at the end of the third quarter. Its shares have gained 444.2% year to date, while its Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2021 earnings has risen 287.5% over the past 60 days.
Sunrun
RUN
, a Zacks Rank #3 company, acquired Vivint Solar in October, following which it became an owner of solar assets globally with more than 3GW of solar energy and more than 500,000 customers. Its shares have gained 351.2% year to date, while the year-over-year growth estimate for 2021 sales is pegged at 47.68%.
SunPower
’s
SPWR
total customer base at the end of the third quarter was more than 335,000, led by higher demand for products. It carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Its shares have gained 215.7% year to date, while the Zacks Consensus Estimate for its 2021 earnings reflect improvement of 58.6%.
Sunnova Energy International
NOVA
, a Zacks Rank #3 company, continues to expand customer base, grow dealer network and maintain a robust storage attachment rate. It added more than 7,000 new customers in the third quarter of 2020, up 40% year over year. Its shares have gained 274.6% year to date, while the year-over-year growth estimates for 2021 sales stands at 33.02%.
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Zacks Top 10 Stocks for 2021
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