The Trump administration's 30% tariff on imports of solar cells and modules will result in modules cost increases of 9-10¢/W in year one, reducing to 3-4¢/W in year four, according to separate analyses by GTM Research and Deutsche Bank.
Module costs for US firms in 2018 will still be lower than 2017 prices, despite the impending 30% import tariffs, according to the CEO of Chinese manufacturer turned project developer ReneSola.
According to China’s National Energy Administration (NEA), solar PV installations reached 52.83GW in 2017, up from 34.54GW in 2016, and accounting for around 50% of expected global solar demand last year.
Major China-based PV module manufacturer Risen Energy, which entered PV Tech’s Top 10 module manufacturer’s rankings for the first time in 2017, has reported that its operating income exceeded RMB 10 billion (US$1.56 billion) in 2017, a new record for the company.
Leading PV module encapsulation and backsheet material supplier Hangzhou First Applied Materials Co, formerly First Photovoltaics (PV) was heading for a major collapse in its business profitability in 2017 but relocation compensation from a state land acquisition is expected to provide support to its profitability.
China's CETC Renewable Energy Technology Company has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Andhra Pradesh Economic Development Board (APEDB) to set up a PV cell manufacturing facility in the Indian state.
An initial five-year R&D program is starting between the German-based Centre for Solar Energy and Hydrogen Research Baden-Württemberg (ZSW) and the Institut Photovoltaïque d'Île de France (IPVF) in Paris to develop next-generation flexible photovoltaics featuring copper, indium, gallium and selenium (CIGS) solar cells.
