Founded in 1981, SMA is a global PV brand employing over 3000 employees in 20 countries. As of 2017, the company has sales of over 900 million euros. The brand has become a household name and a staple in the residential and commercial solar PV installations. The SMA Solar technology is listed in the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the SDAX index. They have 1,100 patents and numerous global awards to their name. The Sunny inverters and TS4-R module optimizers are the premium sought-out German inverter solutions for rooftop solar power in Australia. Their consistent support, “German-made”reliability and longevity are few of the reasons that may be attributed to their success in the industry.
As per Sunwiz reports, in 2018, the total installations of SMA will reach around 3.4 GW- 1.5 GW in rooftop and 1.9GW in large-scale projects. This constitutes 50% overall inverter market share, thereby becoming the most popular solar inverter in Australia. The 95% share in the utility-scale projects showcases the brand’s dominance and trustworthiness in the market. By the third quarter of 2018, the German heavyweight had shipments exceeding 6.2 GW globally; forecasted to reach 8 GW by the end of the year. That is, the Australian market contributes to over one-quarter of the company’s sales.
Currently, plans to expand their operations and management in the country is ramped up – adding more permanent employees and local sub contractors. Furthermore, they have invested in various projects like the central inverter platform. As of now, the company has 54 permanent employees and 8 authorized distributors in the country. They are trailed only by Fronius in the solar inverter market sales. Fronius is another central European brand who has built up a reputation in the country for delivering reliable string inverters with long lifecycles and warranties.
Sources: PV Magazine Australia, SMA-Australia
