Off-Grid Solar Market Trends Report 2016
By 2020, the sales of off-grid solar products in emerging markets are expected to reach $3.1 billion, providing access to improved energy for 99 million households with no access to the grid, according to a new report released by the World Bank Group and Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF), in collaboration with the Global Off-Grid Lighting Association (GOGLA). The report, titled Off-Grid Solar Market Trends, tracks the ground-breaking technological advances and innovative business models which have emerged to transform the lives of millions through affordable modern solar energy services. It shows that the off-grid solar industry is booming and a growing wave of development partners and investors are committing significant funds, with a primary focus on pay-as-you-go business models. The report finds that annual investments into the industry have risen to $276 million in 2015, a fifteen-fold increase since 2012. It also shows that 89 million people in Africa and Asia already enjoy improved access to energy by using off-grid solar products.