100GW capacity! European inverter manufacturers avoid dependence on China and export to the United States.

Europe's inverter manufacturing capacity has now surpassed 100GW, making the region the world's largest inverter manufacturing base outside of China.

The report shows that Europe's inverter manufacturing capacity now exceeds the Asia-Pacific region's (excluding India and China) 70GW, the US's 40GW, and India's nearly 20GW.

The trend of inverter manufacturing capacity changes in various regions is shown in the figure above. According to Mollie McCorkindale, the growth of EU inverter manufacturing capacity has made Europe a "global regional manufacturing capacity leader" and is gradually becoming a competitor that can once again "go head-to-head" with Chinese inverter companies.

"Calling Europe a global leader in inverter manufacturing capacity is fair," McCorkindale told. "The region has successfully maintained and expanded its manufacturing footprint in this key segment of the solar value chain, demonstrating technological strength and industrial scale." The growth of EU manufacturing capacity is significant. Last month, McCorkindale predicted in blog post that European inverter manufacturing capacity would reach 100GW by the end of this year. This growth can be traced back to several policies implemented at the EU level.

These include the Net Zero Industry Act (NZIA), which aims to ensure that 40% of deployed net zero technologies are manufactured domestically by 2030. Additionally, there are recent policies targeting Chinese-made inverters—the EU had previously characterized reliance solely on inverter imports from China as "high-risk."

In the months that followed, the EU banned funding for energy projects using Chinese inverters, creating an opportunity for European manufacturers to establish what McCorkindale calls "viable alternatives to China's dominance."

"Access to non-Chinese inverter suppliers provides strategic independence for regions like Europe and the US, reducing vulnerability to supply chain disruptions," McCorkindale stated. "While China leads in Solar Module production, Europe's strength in inverters helps create a more balanced competitive landscape and fosters a more collaborative global supply chain."

European inverter exports "mostly" go to the US

Establishing a European-made inverter supply chain for export to markets like the US is another key step in addressing this issue. According to McCorkindale, a "significant portion" of European inverter shipments go to the United States, as the US seeks to reduce its reliance on Clean Energy components produced by China or Chinese companies.

"This allows them to serve the US market while meeting localization requirements and avoiding potential trade barriers," McCorkindale explained.

However, she noted that European developers are expected to purchase nearly 20GW of European-made inverters this year, the most of any region globally. More broadly, Europe's inverter supply chain is not entirely independent. PV Tech Market Research predicts that Europe will import more inverters this year than any other region, as shown in the chart above.

"Europe's continued heavy reliance on Chinese companies for inverters and materials demonstrates that despite strong domestic manufacturing capabilities, China's market influence remains," McCorkindale stated. "While Europe leads in inverter manufacturing, true supply chain independence requires strengthening its capabilities in key areas where China dominates, such as cells, modules, and polysilicon."