Suppliers of solar panel modules sustain output, capacity expansion

Production of solar panel modules in China remains in an upturn, but continues at a less frenetic pace than in 2014 when the industry surged back after struggling with overcapacity. The average capacity utilization rate is now at 86 percent and steadily rising as makers boost output to meet demand. By this year's end, yield is projected to climb by more than 15 percent from nearly 21 percent in 2015 when it hit 43GW.

At the same time, suppliers press on with capacity buildup, encouraged by growing PV installations worldwide and locally.

Cumulative installed capacity will surge to 310GW this year, from 40GW in end-2010, according to IHS. China, the US and Japan will collectively account for 65 percent of this. As for 2016 alone, global installed capacity is expected to reach 69GW from 59GW in the previous year. Most of the 10GW increase is from the US' addition of 5.6GW, India's 2.7GW and China's 0.9GW.

In China, the provinces of Gansu, Qinghai and Xinjiang in the northwest, Neimenggu in the north, and Jiangsu in the east and north of Shanghai will continue to lead in terms of PV projects. Among the sunniest regions in China, they have the bulk of China's cumulative installations, accounting for 25,950MW of the 41,580MW total in end-2015.

To capitalize on this expanding application, local makers keep the solar panel module line dynamic. They will continue to bolster the output for monocrystalline types in coming years to broaden the polycrystalline-dominated range. Production of thin-film variants will be sustained as well

Makers emphasize improved efficiency, and are watching for new developments in key component solar cells. At present, they can achieve up to 16.5 percent in polycrystalline modules and as high as 17 percent in monocrystalline counterparts. The respective average ratings are 15.91 and 16.53 percent.

In addition to maximizing opportunities at home, China suppliers will keep up efforts to establish a stronger foothold overseas. The US and Japan are their major destinations based on export value in the past two years. Thailand, Australia, South Korea and Pakistan are the new markets that joined them in the top 10, according to the January to November 2015 statistics. The UK, India, Holland and the Philippines are the rest.

There are 150 makers of solar panel modulesin China, and most are in the provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Hebei. Trina Solar, Canadian Solar, JinkoSolar, JA Solar and Yingli Green are the leading local suppliers.

Sopray Solar Group Co. Ltd, Solar Leading Group Ltd, Luoyang Winners Solar Technology Co. Ltd, Ningbo Osda Solar Co. Ltd and Shenzhen Juguangneng Science & Technology Co. Ltd focus on crystalline-silicon types. Polycrystalline kinds dominate the yield of the first three, while the share at Ningbo Osda is about 50 percent. Ningbo Magus PV Co. Ltd offers crystalline-silicon and thin-film products with respective shares of 70 and 30 percent.