Global Solar Tracker Market Sees Significant Growth

Key takeaways

• Nextracker remains the dominant global leader in solar tracker shipments with a 23% market share, becoming the first US solar firm to achieve 100 GW in cumulative shipments

• India and Saudi Arabia recorded the fastest year-on-year growth in tracker installations, with India seeing a 10.6x increase and Saudi Arabia a 4.4x growth

• Nextracker, Array Technologies, GameChange, and PVH lead global tracker supply, while newcomers like TrinaTracker are quickly rising.

According to the latest tracker report from S&P Global, published in July 2024, global tracker shipments in 2023 increased by 29% to 94 GW, after growing 38% in the previous year. The growth was mainly contributed by mature markets such as the US (36.5 GW vs. 34.1 GW previously), Spain and Brazil. However, other markets, though smaller, have been growing rapidly as well. Especially, the Saudi Arabian and Indian markets saw high year-on-year growth. While India registered a 10.6 times boost in tracker installations, Saudi Arabia showed 4.4x yearly growth. Some countries just appeared on the tracker map, like Uzbekistan, which installed 2.3GW; it had zero tracking system installations the year before.

Another market survey, Global Solar PV Tracker Market Share 2024, published in July 2024 by Wood Mackenzie, saw global solar PV tracker shipments going up by 28% annually to 92 GW DC in 2023 . With more than 37 GW DC capacity, the US was the largest individual market for PV trackers, reporting a 10% Year-over-Year (YoY) increase thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) boosting the buildup of large-scale projects. Spain came next as it represented more than 50% of the European demand last year. The Chinese market, on the other hand, fell to 4.3 GW DC last year even as it installed more than 140 GW DC of utility-scale projects. There was high demand for fixed-tilt products as the Chinese market was driven by low system installation costs. Also, a recent corporate presentation from Soltec showed that the tracker segment is on a steady growth trajectory, with installations expected to grow at an average annual rate of 15% from 2023 to 2025. By 2025, solar trackers are anticipated to constitute 55% of total installations (excluding China), emphasizing their strengthened value proposition and increasing adoption in the solar energy sector. Globally, approximately 150 GW in Europe and 300 GW of solar trackers in the US are expected to be installed between 2023 and 2030, showcasing the strong growth potential in the solar PV market.

Company rankings

The top 10 companies in terms of shipments for 2023 are the same in the 2024 solar tracker reports from S&P Global and Wood Mackenzie(see graph). In the tracker supplier landscape, Nextracker is the undisputed leader of the segment. The company has remained the market leader for 8 consecutive years – and it doesn’t look like this will be changing anytime soon. According to Wood Mackenzie, its market share in shipments in 2023 was 23%, that’s 7% more than the second. In its quarterly results announced in May 2024, Nextracker said that it has become the first US solar company to reach 100GW in cumulative shipments. It has installations across 40 countries, with the US being the primary market given it is headquartered there. Key markets for Nextracker include India, the Middle East, Brazil, Europe, Australia, and Africa. In its quarterly results published in Feb. 2024, Nextracker said that it expects the revenue mix to be approximately 2/3rd US and 1/3rd international for the full year 2024. In an effort to improve its own supply chain as well as strengthen the manufacturing base, Nextracker has partnered across the US to install fabrication lines dedicated to producing solar steel for its trackers. In May, the company said it now has more than 50 GW of global annual supply capacity, including over 30 GW within the US. Nextracker claims to have launched or expanded 20 US partner manufacturing facilities since 2021. In October 2023, the company said that its manufacturing capacity in India had reached 10 GW.

Array Technologies is the second-largest supplier of trackers. While it has not responded to the survey, the company's cumulative installed / awarded tracker projects total over 60+ GW according to its website. WoodMac saw Array’s share at 16% in 2023, which is down from its 20% market share S&P tracked for 2022. In its second-quarter results published in Aug. 2024, Array reported a 50% drop in revenue year-on-year due to lower volumes stemming from project delays and declining ASPs. On its earnings call, it said that its total executed contracts and awarded orders at the end of June 2024 totaled $2 billion, about 80% of which is scheduled for delivery between now and 2025-end. The management said that it expects to receive orders for 2025 deliveries for several more quarters to come, which gives it confidence for future growth.

US-based GameChange, the No. 3 with 12% global shipments share in 2023 according to WoodMac, has not provided any data and is not listed this year despite its focus on the US. The same is true for PVH from Spain with a global share of 10%, now ranked 4^th.Arctech is the largest tracker supplier from China, and the global No. 5 with a 9% market share, according to WoodMac. For our survey, the company has added 2 more products in addition to the 2 previously listed, promoting now a total of 4 products.

TrinaTracker, the tracker arm of leading integrated cell and module maker Trinasolar, is carving its own path in the growing tracker segment. A newcomer compared to some established tracker players, TrinaTracker leverages its parent company's broad expertise across the value chain to make its mark, while also relying on the know-how from its 2018 acquisition of the Spanish company Nclave. During our TaiyangNews Solar Power Plants 2024 Conference in April 2024, TrinaTracker showed it has systems operating in 16 countries. The company’s shipments for 2023 were over 5 GW, resulting in a No. 6 position in WoodMac's ranking, a growth of around 150% from the 2 GW it installed in 2022. Trina is positive about maintaining this growth for 2024.

Soltec from Spain specializes in manufacturing solar trackers and engaging in greenfield solar project development. Its operations span Europe, Latam and the US, with a considerable track record of 18+ GW of tracker projects. WoodMac sees Soltec ranked 7 based on a 5% share in 2023 (Soltec itself believes its share was 7%). In June 2024, Soltec showed in a corporate presentation that after shipments of 3.8 GW in 2022 and 2.1 GW in 2023, it supplied 813 MW of trackers in Q1 2024 (nearly 3x YoY), has 600 MW under operation and construction, and a 12.6 GW pipeline under development.

Part of the large Spanish metal conglomerate Gonvarri, Gonvarri Solar Steel (GSS) distinguishes itself by fully owning and operating its manufacturing facilities located around the world, according to Navarro. Since entering the solar sector in 2005, GSS initially focused on supplying fixed structures but later expanded to include trackers. Beginning with a multi-row tracker in 2007, the company has continually adapted its products to meet market requirements. Today, the mainstream products are 1P trackers available in single- or dual-row configurations. To date, the company has achieved a cumulative total of around 7.6 GW in tracker installations, with more than 3 GW attained in 2023 alone and approximately 1 GW in 2022. In WoodMac’s ranking, it is ranked 8^th with a 2023 market share of 4%.

Axial was the 9^th largest tracker supplier in 2023 in WoodMac rankings. It is mainly focusing on the UK, France, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Ireland, Portugal, Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Mexico markets, operating from São Paulo and Valencia with new production facilities in China. The company sees a notable growth in the Italian market due to the notable growth in agrivoltaics, featuring trackers. The company estimates that the tracker market will continue to grow, particularly in Spain, Southern France, Italy, and Portugal. Strategically, Axial is looking to expand into new markets, including the USA, Baltic Countries and Latam. Axial has a production capacity of 2 GW per year in Europe with plans to increase it to 6 GW. In Brazil, its current capacity stands at 0.5 GW per year, with efforts underway to double it to 1 GW. The company also intends to enter the US market and establish local manufacturing. In terms of shipment volumes, Axial delivered nearly 1 GW of trackers in Europe and 300 MW in Brazil in 2022. Its shipments increased significantly in 2023 with approximately 1.5 GW in Europe and nearly 0.6 GW in Brazil, totaling around 2.1 GW globally. This substantial increase is attributed to the growth in the average size of tracker projects, which are now 4 or 5 times larger than in previous years. Looking ahead, Axial aims to achieve nearly 3 GW in global tracker shipments this year.

The text is excerpt from the latest TaiyangNews Solar Trackers Market Survey 2024, which can be downloaded for free here.