For Chinese-based solar PV manufacturing companies, Australia is becoming a battleground for control over one of the world’s biggest and most stable solar markets. At All-Energy Australia 2024 in Melbourne, various manufacturers took to the exhibition to promote their next products to the country.
One such company is Tongwei Solar, which was recently ranked 467 in the Fortune Global 500 rankings, the second consecutive year it has been included in the list. Following this success, Tongwei Solar is now eyeing increased growth in the Australian solar market.
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In this article, PV Tech speaks with Chen Fangzhou, head of APAC & MEA at Tongewi Solar, to learn more about the company’s aspirations for the Australian solar PV market and some of its new products.
PV Tech: Where does Tongwei fit into the Australian solar PV market? Where are some of the opportunities, and what are some obstacles?
Tongwei Solar entered the solar PV module market a long time ago and started our PV business in 2006. We started with polysilicon and started selling that. We are very good at PV manufacturing and are in the top 500 Fortune Global 500 rankings. So we are very confident that we are able to bring the best product to the Australian market.
What are some of your goals for the Australian market? What would a successful five years look like for Tongwei?
Australia has a very big and stable solar PV market, adding around 5-6GW each year. For Tongwei, Australia is an important aspect of our Asia-Pacific market, and for the last three years, we have been doing a lot of work in the distribution market.
We cooperate with many partners in Australia, so I think we can take a leadership role in the distribution market. In solar projects, such as solar farms, but this will take a bit longer than the distributed market. Tongwei has helped finish one project, a 100MW solar farm in Australia, and some other 10MW projects have already been completed, so we are moving fast with large-scale projects.
Can you talk us through some of your new products? Could you tease any up-and-coming products?
This year, we are bringing two new products to Australia: the TNC-G12 and the TNC-G12R. That’s a brand with the highest efficiency in the market. Tongwei has a full supply chain from the polysilicon, wafer, cell, and module.
Currently, Tongwei’s cell mass production efficiency exceeds 25%.Because of the biology of the solar cell, we can use that to create an efficient solar module. That’s why Tongwei modules always have the highest output in the market, and we are very happy to bring these to Australia.
Why does the Australian market have so much potential? Do you think the growth for solar PV can continue in the country?
We believe in the potential of the Australian market, which is a stable market for Tongwei. It is a mature market, and so branding is very important. Many of the top solar brands are currently fighting for the Australian market; we think we have advantages over our competitors. We believe we can attract customers in Australia who love our product and our brand; this will be one of our advantages.
Australia is our main target in the Asia-Pacific market. Still, there are also opportunities in other countries in the region, such as Pakistan and India, but these are not as stable. Australia is very stable, and it has been for several years. We want to invest in this country for the coming years and bring us more demand and orders.
What one message would you like to provide our PV Tech audience with?
At Tongwei Solar, we focus on manufacturing and the overall supply chain, but we also believe ESG is a very important part of the industry. With the mission of “Together to Win,” we have established the core principles of “build together,” “govern together,” and “share together.” We are committed to ongoing, in-depth communication with stakeholders to further clarify our four ESG strategic pillars: Harmonious Partnerships, Sustainable Development, Thriving Ecosystems, and Value Creation.Tongwei promises to achieve the goal of using 100% renewable energy by 2030 at the latest.
