Non-Concentrating Solar Collector Market - Global Industry Size, Share, Trends, Opportunity, and Forecast, Segmented By Absorber Plates (Copper, Aluminum, and Steel Plates), By Application (Residential, Commercial, and Industrial), By Region & Competition, 2021-2031F

Forecast Period	2027-2031
Market Size (2025)	USD 12.39 Billion
CAGR (2026-2031)	12.39%
Fastest Growing Segment	Industrial
Largest Market	Asia Pacific
Market Size (2031)	USD 24.97 Billion

Market Overview

The Global Non-Concentrating Solar Collector Market will grow from USD 12.39 Billion in 2025 to USD 24.97 Billion by 2031 at a 12.39% CAGR. The Global Non-Concentrating Solar Collector Market is defined by the production and deployment of flat-plate and evacuated tube systems that absorb diffuse and direct solar radiation to generate thermal energy without optical magnification. The expansion of this sector is fundamentally supported by rigorous government decarbonization mandates and an urgent emphasis on energy security which compels nations to diversify heating sources beyond fossil fuels. These structural drivers remain distinct from temporary market trends as they represent long-term policy shifts toward sustainable infrastructure in residential and industrial applications.

However, the industry faces a significant impediment arising from intense competition posed by electrified heating alternatives such as heat pumps which increasingly capture market share due to their dual heating and cooling capabilities. This competitive pressure contributes to a complex growth environment for thermal technologies despite their efficiency. According to Solar Heat Europe, in 2023, the global solar thermal industry recorded a newly installed capacity of approximately 21 gigawatts-thermal.

Key Market Drivers

The implementation of supportive government incentives for renewable heating serves as a primary structural driver for the Global Non-Concentrating Solar Collector Market. Governments are increasingly codifying decarbonization mandates, creating a stable investment environment that encourages the adoption of flat-plate and evacuated tube collectors over fossil-fuel incumbents. This regulatory momentum is particularly evident in the European Union, where updated directives are compelling member states to aggressively decarbonize their thermal sectors. According to Solar Heat Europe, October 2025, in the 'Solar Thermal Market Outlook 2024/2025', the sector's long-term growth is underpinned by the Renewable Energy Directive, which establishes a binding target for nations to increase the share of renewable energy in heating and cooling by at least 0.8 percentage points annually. Such policy frameworks are essential for de-risking large-scale projects and ensuring sustained market demand.

Simultaneously, the increasing utilization of solar thermal for industrial process heat (SHIP) acts as a critical growth engine as manufacturers seek to mitigate volatile fuel costs and comply with strict emissions regulations. This trend marks a shift toward large-scale industrial integrations where non-concentrating collectors provide low-to-medium temperature heat for sectors such as food processing and mining. According to the International Energy Agency Solar Heating and Cooling Programme (IEA SHC), June 2025, in the 'Solar Heat Worldwide 2025' report, this industrial demand resulted in 106 new solar process heat plants being commissioned globally in 2024, adding 120 megawatts of thermal capacity. Highlighting the broader context of this resilient market environment, the German Solar Association (BSW-Solar), March 2025, in its 'Statistical Data on the German Solar Heating Market' publication, reported that approximately 26,000 new solar thermal systems were installed in Germany during 2024.

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Key Market Challenges

The Global Non-Concentrating Solar Collector Market is critically hampered by the accelerating adoption of electrified heating alternatives, particularly heat pumps. This competitive challenge arises from the functional versatility of heat pumps, which offer dual heating and cooling capabilities within a single system, unlike solar thermal collectors that strictly generate heat. As construction trends and government policies increasingly favor full electrification to simplify building infrastructure, the necessity for separate solar thermal installations is significantly reduced. Consequently, consumers and industrial operators are bypassing solar thermal investments in favor of comprehensive heat pump units that align more closely with modern grid-interactive energy strategies.

This displacement effect has led to a measurable contraction in market performance as capital shifts toward electrification. According to the International Energy Agency Solar Heating and Cooling Programme (IEA SHC), in its 2025 annual report, the global annual installed capacity of solar thermal systems declined by 14% in 2024 compared to the previous year. This significant downward trajectory highlights how the widespread competitive pressure from electrified heating solutions is directly eroding the addressable market share for traditional non-concentrating solar collectors.

Key Market Trends

The proliferation of Hybrid Photovoltaic-Thermal (PVT) collectors represents a significant technological convergence, directly addressing the critical issue of spatial competition between solar thermal and photovoltaic technologies on rooftops. By generating both electricity and thermal energy simultaneously from a single module, PVT systems offer a higher energy yield per square meter, making them increasingly attractive for space-constrained residential and commercial buildings aiming for Net Zero status. This dual-generation capability effectively counters the displacement threat posed by standalone PV installations coupled with electrified heating. According to Solarthermalworld, July 2025, in the 'Global PVT market in transition' article, this resurgence in demand was evidenced by the installation of 72,544 square meters of new PVT collectors worldwide in 2024, signaling a robust recovery for the technology.

Simultaneously, the market is witnessing a strategic shift toward the increasing deployment of solar district heating with seasonal storage, moving beyond individual building systems to city-level infrastructure. Municipalities are integrating large-scale collector fields into district heating networks, often coupled with seasonal thermal energy storage to stockpile summer heat for winter use, thereby significantly reducing reliance on fossil fuel grids. This utility-scale approach allows for higher solar fractions in urban heating supplies and provides a hedge against volatile energy prices for entire communities. According to the IEA Solar Heating and Cooling Programme (IEA SHC), June 2025, in the 'Solar Heat Worldwide 2025' report, this sector's momentum resulted in ten new solar district heating systems being commissioned globally in 2024, adding a combined capacity of 74 megawatts to the existing infrastructure.

Segmental Insights

The Industrial segment is identified as the fastest-growing category in the Global Non-Concentrating Solar Collector Market, primarily due to the increasing requirement for sustainable process heating. Manufacturing entities are prioritizing these systems to lower carbon footprints and minimize exposure to fluctuating fossil fuel prices. Enhanced collector designs now offer the reliability needed for heat-intensive operations, encouraging widespread adoption across sectors like food processing and chemicals. Additionally, supportive government mandates aiming for industrial energy efficiency are significantly propelling this segment's rapid development.

Regional Insights

Asia Pacific maintains a dominant position in the global non-concentrating solar collector market, supported by robust demand for solar water heating systems in residential and industrial sectors. This leadership is largely attributed to renewable energy mandates implemented by authorities such as China's National Energy Administration, which prioritize thermal energy decarbonization. Furthermore, the region benefits from a well-established manufacturing base that ensures the availability of cost-effective solar thermal solutions. Continuous urbanization and the strategic shift toward sustainable heating infrastructure in emerging economies solidify the region's status as the primary revenue generator in this industry.

Recent Developments

• In July 2025, First Solar entered into an exclusive, multi-year supply agreement with UbiQD, a nanotechnology development company, to integrate quantum dot technology into its thin-film solar modules. This collaboration followed a successful joint research and development phase that demonstrated the potential of quantum dots to enhance the light conversion efficiency of solar panels. Under the agreement, the supplier committed to providing proprietary fluorescent quantum dot materials for incorporation into the manufacturer's bifacial thin-film products. This partnership aims to optimize the spectral response of the modules, thereby increasing energy yield in utility-scale non-concentrating solar deployments without requiring changes to the underlying semiconductor manufacturing process.
• In October 2024, JinkoSolar launched the Tiger Neo 3.0 series, a new generation of N-type TOPCon solar modules, at an industry event. This product line was reported to deliver a power output of up to 670 watts for utility-scale applications and 495 watts for residential use, with a conversion efficiency reaching 24.8%. The company utilized its proprietary high-efficiency technologies to optimize the module's performance, achieving higher bifacial factors and lower degradation rates. This development represents a significant advancement in the performance metrics of mass-produced non-concentrating photovoltaic modules, aiming to reduce the balance of system costs for solar projects globally.
• In July 2024, Consolar Solare Energiesysteme GmbH announced that it had secured a United States patent for its SOLINK PVT heat pump collector, expanding the intellectual property protection for this technology beyond Europe and China. The SOLINK system is a non-concentrating hybrid collector that combines photovoltaic electricity generation with a thermal air-brine heat exchanger. The newly patented design features a heat exchanger surface formed by vertically positioned fins rather than a flat connection, significantly increasing the surface area available for heat transfer from the air. This breakthrough allows the collector to serve as the sole heat source for heat pumps, even during night-time operations, thereby advancing the capabilities of dual-purpose solar collectors.
• In April 2024, Maxeon Solar Technologies introduced its new line of SunPower Performance 7 solar panels, designed specifically for distributed generation projects. This product launch featured the company's patented TOPCon cell technology integrated into a shingled-cell architecture, which aims to provide enhanced power, efficiency, and reliability compared to standard panels. The Performance 7 panels were engineered to offer effective shade management and cooler cell operating temperatures, addressing common issues such as hotspots. Additionally, the company highlighted that these panels received Cradle to Cradle certification, underscoring their adherence to high sustainability standards in materials and manufacturing processes within the global non-concentrating solar collector market.

Key Market Players

• Soltec Power Holdings S.A.
• Viessmann Werke GmbH & Co. KG
• Bosch Thermotechnik GmbH
• GREENoneTEC Solarindustrie GmbH
• Vaillant GmbH
• Apricus Solar Co., Ltd.
• Phoenix Solar Thermal Inc
• SunMaxx Solar
• ABB Ltd
• Solimpeks

By Absorber Plates	By Application	By Region
Copper Aluminum Steel Plates	Residential Commercial Industrial	North America Europe Asia Pacific South America Middle East & Africa

Report Scope:

In this report, the Global Non-Concentrating Solar Collector Market has been segmented into the following categories, in addition to the industry trends which have also been detailed below:

• Non-Concentrating Solar Collector Market, By Absorber Plates:

• Copper
• Aluminum
• Steel Plates

• Non-Concentrating Solar Collector Market, By Application:

• Residential
• Commercial
• Industrial

• Non-Concentrating Solar Collector Market, By Region:

• North America
• United States
• Canada
• Mexico
• Europe
• France
• United Kingdom
• Italy
• Germany
• Spain
• Asia Pacific
• China
• India
• Japan
• Australia
• South Korea
• South America
• Brazil
• Argentina
• Colombia
• Middle East & Africa
• South Africa
• Saudi Arabia
• UAE