According to Bloomberg Businessweek, on Oct. 28, First Solar, the largest manufacturer of solar panels in the world, posted a third-quarter rise in sales of fifteen percent, due to higher sales in Germany and Canada.

The higher solar-panel sales in Germany are almost certainly linked to a conference and exhibition called Intersolar Europe that took place in Munich in June. The three day annual event was the largest solar exhibition in the world based on number of exhibitors, visitors, and size of the exhibition space. It was host to a record 1,884 exhibiting companies and over 72,000 visitors. Intersolar, whose attendance has been steadily rising since 2005, is like a barometer of the solar industry.

“The relevance of solar energy within the international energy supply as a renewable energy source is increasing,” said Iris Funke, spokeswoman for Intersolar. “Therefore, the German and the international solar industry is developing very fast. New markets like India or China are booming.”

Of the 1,884 exhibiting companies, 339 of them were from China. Spain had the second largest showing of foreign exhibitors, with 73 companies representing.

“The interest in solar is rising, and so the interest in Intersolar Europe as an international meeting point for the whole solar industry is increasing,” said Funke. “This leads to a continuous growth of the exhibition.”

The exhibition space totaled 134,000 square meters with 64 percent of exhibitors in that space showcasing photovoltaic products.

“Therefore more and more companies use Intersolar as international networking platform,” she said.

The exhibition saw 3,300 visitors from Italy, the largest share of international visitors, followed by Austria with 2,709 and France with 2,531 visitors. The United States sent 41 exhibitors over to Germany as well as 1,171 visitors.

“The organizers expect Intersolar Europe to grow also in 2011 and to surpass the success of this year’s event,” said Funke.

The next Intersolar exhibition is currently in the planning stages and will take place June 8-10, 2011.

Pictured: Intersolar's press photo for the conference, which confirms all of our fears here in America that European conferences are more fun and take place outside.