The Chinese government’s list of approved solar manufacturers, which threatened to leave more than three quarters of the country’s operators in the wilderness, will not spill over into the global PV market, according to analysts IHS.
The finalised list of 109 companies based on size, technology and environmental standards, excludes those not on it from state support and procurement programmes. Despite this, several big names including LDK Solar and Shunfeng, took a relaxed position about their exclusion.
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Shunfeng told PV Tech that it had chosen not to apply but was considering doing so when the list reopens to applications in six months time.
“The recently published Chinese ‘PV industry standards’ will only have a minimal effect on global photovoltaic markets,” said Jessica Jin, solar analyst at IHS. “The government’s policy will accelerate consolidation amongst smaller suppliers, but will hardly have any impact on total available production capacity.
“The published document aims to offer guidance and recommendations for PV stakeholders rather than representing a list of permission licences,” explains Jin. “The Chinese government is very unlikely to actively push companies not on the list out of business.”
The significance of the list remains ambiguous. Major manufacturers are comfortable about their exclusion, a position IHS appears to justify. However, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology states in its guidelines for the list that those failing to meet the criteria would not benefit from “export tax rebates, application support and other domestic policy support”.
The majority of China's major suppliers, including Trina, Yingli and Jinko, were on the ministry's initial list.
