Polysilicon producer REC Silicon has surprisingly terminated it supply chain partnership with US PV manufacturing start-up Violet Power, claiming it would best serve its shareholders by focusing on doing business with “established, proven, active and relevant solar supply chain partners”.
Manufacturers of solar glass are expecting average selling prices to fall over the course of 2021 as more capacity comes onstream, but high prices last year helped send profits soaring.
‘Solar Module Super League’ (SMSL) member Trina Solar has reported total module shipments in 2020 of 15,915MW, an increase of over 81% compared to the 8,756MW shipments recorded in 2019.
Analysing the manufacturer's recent results disclosure, Mark Osborne details how Canadian Solar is falling behind its key rivals regarding its manufacturing expansions and shipments plans
Polysilicon provider Wacker witnessed a sales recovery in the second half of 2020, but ongoing cost reductions coupled with weak first half demand led to polysilicon plant utilisation rates averaging 85%.
Having topped RMB1.9/Watt (US$0.29/W) in early 2020 before falling to RMB1.4/Watt (US$0.21/W), PV module prices in China have been on a rollercoaster of late. PV Tech's Carrie Xiao has the latest on module pricing from China.
Details of India’s proposed basic customs duty (BCD) on imported solar modules and cells are expected to be announced this week, according to a report in BusinessLine.
Mark Osborne provides a detailed analysis of First Solar’s technology and manufacturing strategy, examining its production transition issues to date and the company’s product efficiency roadmap.
As the technology continues to mature, the race to successfully commercialise and drive heterojunction (HJT) manufacturing to the multi-gigawatt level is getting increasingly competitive. PV Tech spoke to Jinergy chief executive officer Liyou Yang to determine what the remaining challenges are in relation to mass HJT manufacturing, and how close the industry may be to it.
