InterSolar Europe 2025: Challenges and opportunities

The Intersolar Europe 2025 took place from May 6 to 9 in Munich, featuring major manufacturers primarily showcasing n-type TOPCon, HJT, and BC products, with slight adjustments from last year. Spain's recent blackout has sparked vibrant discussions around solar-plus-storage solutions.
 

Market demand and policies

Survey during the expo reveals that demand in Europe this year may remain flat or decline from last year, with key markets such as France, Italy, Austria, and Romania seeing stable or modest growth. However, countries like Spain and Greece are facing weaker demand due to falling electricity prices, lower project returns, and delays in grid-connection timelines. Overall, demand in 2025 may slip, with most market estimates placing AC-side installations at 65–70 GW.

Countries most widely discussed:

• Large-scale blackout in Spain

  The blackout prompted renewed discussions around the long-term stability of Spain’s energy structure. The impact appears limited in the short term, thanks to ongoing demand driven by incentives linked to storage subsidies. Many projects originally planned to ramp up in 2024 have been delayed to 2026—a development already heard about last year. Currently, many projects are still scheduled in 1H26, mitigating short-term concerns about the impact on the market. However, the blackout has sparked critical national reflection, raising doubts about the resilience of Spain’s energy structure. As a result, the long-term demand outlook is gloomy.

• Germany

  The Solar Peak Act, implemented in late February 2025, aims to tighten control over the rapid growth of solar PV installations in recent years. Under this policy, systems with a newly installed capacity exceeding 2 kW will no longer receive EEG subsidies during periods of negative electricity prices. According to the Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagentur), Germany added 0.79 GWac of PV installations in March 2025, down 53% MoM from 1.67 GWac and down 44% YoY from 1.4 GWac. As the largest traditional PV market in Europe, Germany’s sharp decline has raised concerns across the industry regarding broader European demand. During Intersolar, discussions highlighted that the ripple effects of this policy shift could extend into late 3Q25.
   

Slow progress in local capacity expansion

Driven by the Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA), European countries have continued to advocate for localized manufacturing, aiming to reduce reliance on a single country for key components and equipment.

However, despite a year of discussions, only a limited number of concrete plans have materialized. Most initiatives remain in the negotiation stage, with real progress hindered by several challenges. Local manufacturers face high production costs, complex administrative approval processes, and insufficient financial support, all of which make it hard to translate capacity planning into actual output. Moreover, many of the existing measures do not directly subsidize the supply chain. As a result, Europe's incentives for boosting local manufacturing remain relatively sluggish and lack strong momentum.

Some manufacturers have started outlining clearer development schedules, with facilities primarily located in Romania, France, and Italy. According to InfoLink, local cell manufacturers in Europe remain scarce. While there has been some progress in localizing module production, a significant gap still exists between nameplate capacity and actual output.

Europe-made modules are quoted at EUR 0.19–0.20/W, and only a small number of demonstration projects are using these modules. High production costs and pricing continue to hinder competitiveness against imported modules.
 

Technology and products

While most commercialized modules at this year's expo showed little change from previous years, several manufacturers introduced new products pushing toward higher efficiency. To surpass 24% or even 25% efficiency for TOPCon modules, manufacturers are combining multiple advanced technologies, including:

• Rectangular wafer (210RN)

• SMBB and 0BB, with most exhibits using 20BB to reduce shading and boost current.

• Edge passivation and direct half-cut designs

• Rear-side poly finger technology

• Multi-cut cell technology

• Advances in metallization printing, improving aperture ratio and reducing line width.

However, given cost considerations, whether these highly advanced and complex processes can yield mass-produced products that meet market demand remains to be seen..

Non-standard modules also attracted significant attention at this expo, as some manufacturers introduced various specifications to address different applications amid intensifying competition. These include agrivoltaics, solar fencing, balcony PV, and BIPV.

• In agrivoltaics systems, modules provide power while offering additional benefits such as shading, frost prevention, and drought mitigation, contributing to higher crop yields.

• While module overcapacity and falling prices persist globally, solar fencing is emerging as a new opportunity in Europe, helping manufacturers utilize non-standard products and reduce costs. Vertical installation designs extend sunlight exposure and create generation peaks in the morning and evening.

• Balcony PV and aesthetically focused modules are also gaining traction, often paired with energy storage solutions. 

• For residential rooftops, premium users increasingly prefer tile-like or color-coated modules for enhanced aesthetics, reflecting a growing market acceptance of differentiated designs amid price convergence.
  
  
   

Conclusion

As with 2024, the most widely discussed topics at Intersolar 2025 remain centered on demand changes and price trends, followed by issues such as supply chain recovery and possibility of manufacturers exiting the market.

The key short-term concern is the price decline across the supply chain, with module prices significantly falling during the event. Current module deliveries in Europe are priced at USD 0.09–0.095/W (DDP), with slightly higher prices for project orders, while spot prices have fallen below USD 0.09/W, mostly at USD 0.085–0.088/W. Non-mainstream models are trading at USD 0.067–0.08/W, reflecting market price divergence. Manufacturers will anticipate a new round of price negotiations after the event.


 

As for recovery of the supply chain, while the expected timeline projected in 2024 was mostly set for 2026, inventory clearance during 2024–1H25 has been relatively slow. As a result, many now believe that the supply chain may not stabilize until 2027–2028. Segments with high inventory levels across the supply chain require constant monitoring.

With a prolonged recovery expected, manufacturers are seeking ways to stand out amid intense competition. This has led to growing interest in niche segments like agrivoltaics and balcony PV, with more non-standard products launched this year. There is also strong momentum around PV-plus-storage solutions, and manufacturers are exploring one-stop system integration solutions.

Featured exhibits