GCL-Poly’s polysilicon and wafer shipments plummet in Q3

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email

Shipments of both polysilicon and solar wafers at GCL-Poly, China’s largest producer, fell significantly in the third quarter of 201 underlining the overall weakness in demand from major tier 1 module manufacturing customers based in China.

Polysilicon production also fell significantly in the quarter to 7,631MT, down from 12,998MT in 2Q 2012.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Unlock unlimited access for 12 whole months of distinctive global analysis

Photovoltaics International is now included.

  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Unlimited digital access to the PV Tech Power journal catalogue
  • Unlimited digital access to the Photovoltaics International journal catalogue
  • Access to more than 1,000 technical papers
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

Shipments of polysilicon followed the production decline as GCL-Poly reported only 657MT of shipments in Q3, down from 5,971MT in Q2.

Wafer production slowed to 1,689MW in Q3, down from 1,878MW in Q2. However, wafer shipments fell sharply to 1,130MW, down from 1,952MW in Q2.

Polysilicon production for the first nine months of 2012 were approximately 32,864MT, an increase of approximately 78.4% over the same period a year ago when the company was aggressively ramping up production.

GCL-Poly said that its polysilicon average selling price in Q3 2012 was US$20.1/kg, down from US$21.8/kg in Q2.

Wafer production for the first nine months of 2012 was approximately 4,731MW, a 44.4% increase when compared to the same period a year ago, while wafer sales were 4,316MW, an increase of approximately 34.5% over the same period of 2011. However, wafer sales in Q3 2012 were only 3.8% higher than the same quarter of 2011.

The company said that the average selling price of wafers in Q3 2012 were US$0.25 per watt, down slightly from US$0.26 per watt in Q2.

GCL-Poly said that it had been impacted by several factors which included the European debt crisis, US anti-dumping and countervailing duties and the ASP decline in polysilicon and wafers.

The company reiterated that its polysilicon capacity would remain at 65,000MT in 2013, while its wafer production capacity would remain at 8GW next year.

However, this would mean that utilisation rates will remain low without a recovery in demand. According to polysilicon analyst Johannes Bernreuter from Bernreuter Research, GCL-Poly was operating at only 47% utilisation rate in Q3 2012.

Not surprisingly, the company noted that it was focused on production cost reductions in the coming quarters.

PV project pipeline

GCL-Poly said that its Solar Power joint venture business had over 469MW of projects, of which 95MW were under construction.
 

Read Next

February 18, 2025
Individual market dynamics and appetite for risk play an important role in the effectiveness of co-location as a hedge for renewable assets.
February 18, 2025
Spanish renewables developer Ecoener has secured a US$43.1 million loan to finance a 60MW solar PV plant in the Dominican Republic.
February 18, 2025
Chinese solar manufacturer Tongwei has ended its plan to acquire a controlling stake in fellow Chinese manufacturer Runergy.
February 18, 2025
Sunnova said the job cuts are part of “an optimisation of its business" and the cuts will save around US$35 million.
February 18, 2025
Chinese solar manufacturer LONGi has filed a lawsuit in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas against Jinko Solar.
February 18, 2025
Co-located solar and battery projects are among the most cost-competitive power sources, according to speakers at the Energy Storage Summit.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
February 19, 2025
Tokyo, Japan
Solar Media Events
March 11, 2025
Frankfurt, Germany
Solar Media Events
March 18, 2025
Sydney, Australia