This report provides a comparative analysis of national innovation ecosystems for Building-Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV) in seven countries: Austria, Australia, Finland, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and Sweden.
BIPV represents a promising approach to integrating solar power generation into buildings, yet in most countries, it remains a niche market. This report identifies the key challenges, strengths, and opportunities for advancing BIPV towards broader commercial adoption.
Key Findings:
- The markets for BIPV in the seven studied countries remain niche, with integrated roof systems using regular-sized PV modules as a leading application in all countries except Spain. Spain and Austria lead in PV glazing façade applications.
- Common barriers across these countries include weak collaboration between the PV and construction industries, limited institutional support (economically, technically, or culturally), and the perception that BIPV lacks legitimacy as a standard construction product.
Recommendations to Stimulate BIPV Market Growth:
To overcome these challenges, the report outlines key recommendations to strengthen the BIPV innovation system:
- Engage new actors in BIPV to create a more diverse and robust innovation ecosystem, supported by improved market potential assessments.
- Enhance collaboration across the value chain through joint actions such as roadmaps, market development strategies, and knowledge-sharing initiatives.
- Bridge the cultural and operational divide between the solar and construction sectors, for example, by requiring cross-sector collaboration in tenders and funding calls.
- Support innovation and technological advancements, particularly in the areas of production efficiency and scalable solutions for retrofitting.
- Improve regulations, standardisation, and technical guidance to ensure BIPV products are recognised as legitimate construction materials.
- Create targeted incentives and regulatory measures to stimulate market demand for BIPV solutions.
- Expand education, training, and knowledge transfer to equip industry stakeholders with the necessary expertise to integrate BIPV effectively.
