This study focus on the minimum duration of training data required for PV generation forecast. In order to investigate this issue, the study is implemented on 2 PV installations: the first one in Guadeloupe represented for tropical climate, the second in Lille represented for temperate climate; using 3 different forecast models: the Scaled Persistence Model, the Artificial Neural Network and the Multivariate Polynomial Model. The usual statistical forecasting error indicators: NMBE, NMAE and NRMSE are computed in order to compare the accuracy of forecasts. The results show that with the temperate climate such as Lille, a longer training duration is needed. However, once the model is trained, the performance is better. (c) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.