Enterprises and people involved in the photovoltaic industry should consider the situation from a far-reaching perspective, develop photovoltaic products focusing on long-term positioning, and prove that photovoltaic energy is highly competitive clean energy with technological progress, innovation and data. Quality and services are necessary to conquer the market and win the trust of customers. On the day after the 2019 Solar Congress and “All Quality Matters” Award Ceremony, seven guests from the industry shared their insights on “Opportunities and Challenges: New Trends in Photovoltaic Market Development”.
【Host】
Li Weichun
General Manager of Solar Energy Services and PV Electronics Division,
TÜV Rheinland Greater China
【Guests】
Duan Tao
Product Manager,
Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC)
He Shuangquan
President,
Wuxi Suntech Power Co., Ltd.
Jin Hao
Vice President,
JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd. (JKS)
Ouyang Jiagan
General Manager,
Guangzhou Sanjing Electric Co., Ltd. (SAJ)
Shen Hui
Director,
Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISES), Sun Yat-sen University
Wu Liangcai
Vice President,
Shenzhen Growatt New Energy Technology Co., Ltd.
Zhou Wei
Vice President,
Trina Solar Energy Co., Ltd.
The Greatest Challenge in 2019
Li Weichun: “The situation at this year’s Solar Congress and ‘All Quality Matters’ Award Ceremony is different from that of previous years. There are different opportunities and difficulties. Everyone says that there are several uncertainties in the photovoltaic market in 2019, and the only certainty is uncertainty. What do you think about this situation? What are your thoughts on the photovoltaic market in 2019? What difficulties and challenges will we encounter?”
Ouyang Jiagan // It is hard to predict the policy
“According to me, the challenge in 2019 should be how to find balance in the domestic market. Of course, we all know that the overseas markets still have good opportunities. In terms of residential PV energy, taking SAJ as an example, we now pay more attention to residential PV energy and small and medium-sized businesses. Although it is quite clear that residential PV energy market has certain indicators and subsidies, the problem is that this policy is specific for this year, and we don’t know how it will be next year. In other words, residential PV energy is now a single case, which means there is special treatment. So special treatment this year is quite clear, but what about next year? What we are thinking are the plans for the next two or three years, or longer. But how do we develop the market structure next year? The biggest challenge, I think, is that it is difficult to predict the policy, resulting in problems in mastering the enterprise’s layout and each value chain.”
Jin Hao // Short-term uncertainty
“This is a market problem. I work in technology, so I can only look at certainty and uncertainty from a technical perspective. In my opinion, what is certain is that photovoltaic costs will continue to decline, application will increase, and market share will grow driven by so many new technologies and materials in the long run. We have seen the photovoltaic industry growing exponentially in the previous decade, so I believe there will be a big growth for a long time in the future, even a long period of exponential growth, which is what I believe is certain in the photovoltaic industry.”
“However, we also know that there are many disadvantages in the photovoltaic industry, such as large floor area, relatively poor ability to operate independently, the need for multi-energy integration, and the heavy influence of policies. In such a scenario, the certainty is in the long run in the industry, and the uncertainty in the short term is which companies will perform better, and which will face problems in the context of domestic and global photovoltaic industry in 2019.”
Duan Tao // Growing demand
“As a supplier of ancillary material, there is no doubt that we are in the same boat as the industry. If the industry faces a hard time, we will face an even harder time. Someone just mentioned the impact of policies. Although there may be some projects whose implementation is being rushed, photovoltaic energy is still in demand after the new policy on photovoltaic industry was issued on May 31st, 2018. However, in the second half of 2019, the demand compared to the first half, is entirely different.”
“SABIC is a global leader in production capacity in the fields of PPO and PC copolymer materials that are mainly used in photovoltaic industry. So, how can we better serve the photovoltaic market as an industry leader? First of all, we launched a more reliable material solution for 1500V connectors to adapt to more complex outdoor application requirements and environment. In terms of components, we are producing innovative plastic frames and bracket solutions in large quantities to save system costs. Secondly, on the supply end, we have come up with new plans to expand production since last year, because we believe that future demand will continue to rise. Next, we will try our best to provide more stable, reliable and more competitive supply in future, when there is a boom in the photovoltaic market.”
He Shuangquan // Tough market environment
“To be honest, people in the photovoltaic industry are experiencing different challenges every year. But when we look back on the past, these have been just small problems and there are always bigger challenges awaiting us. In 2018, our photovoltaic industry faced pressure from four aspects: 1. Europe’s anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures for Chinese exports of photovoltaic products; 2. USA’s anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures for Chinese exports of photovoltaic products; 3. India’s safeguard tariffs; and 4. Launch of China’s new ‘May 31st’ policy for the photovoltaic industry. Even so, China’s photovoltaic industry continues to progress and develop, which is something worthy of pride.”
“Our current challenges include: contradiction between the rapid development of photovoltaic technology and insufficient domestic demand and unclear policies; contradiction between lingering subsidies for photovoltaic power stations and needs of enterprise development on capital and funding; contradiction on how to balance stock capacity and new capacity; and contradiction between advanced materials and manufacturing technology and our weak system capability and high non-technical costs, etc. The tough market environment has led to higher requirements for development of photovoltaic technology.”
Shen Hui // We should have confidence
“Speaking of the photovoltaic market, there is no need to worry about its development every year, because the industry has never been stagnant. It has always moved forward, even skyrocketing at times. We have weathered 2018’s financial crisis, and passed the international and domestic trials of last year.”
“I believe that nobody can stop the photovoltaic industry’s development, because the sun and renewable resources are always there, and they cannot be exceeded by other ways of electricity generation that consume earth’s resources. The photovoltaic industry is sure to improve and get better. China should formulate a specific plan for mid and long-term development of photovoltaic application. In fact, there are still many undeveloped markets in our country, such as building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV). If it is combined with applications and the terminals, it opens another market. We should be full of confidence.”
Wu Liangcai // Maintain the quality bottom line
“The Chinese market has encountered some difficulties, and this is actually similar to a body suffering a cold, but we will be better soon. We can see that the overseas markets such as Europe and Australia are developing very soundly. Some emerging markets such as South America and India are also growing rapidly, with a positive overall trend.”
“In China, we are talking about ‘All Quality Matters’ today, and we must focus on the quality bottom line. I know it very clearly because I work in technology. I have seen the bidding price these days, and in my opinion, there is a rate below which the technology cannot advance. If the price continues like this, it will surely affect the quality. We have to maintain the bottom line and the confidence of people in the photovoltaic industry and enterprises. Even though we may encounter some difficulties presently, as long as we stick to the product orientation and focus on product quality, I believe that we will have a very bright future.”
Zhou Wei // Balance of quantity, price and quality
“The industry is still facing challenges in quantity, price and quality this year. In the domestic market, we are now anxiously awaiting the release of the policy as it affects all enterprises in the industry chain. However, many industry layouts are not being directly implemented or are affected because of delay in policy release.”
“At the same time, due to delay in introduction of domestic policies, there will be more intense overseas market competition. Furthermore, the introduction of new technologies, construction of new capacity and continuously declining prices in the entire transformation process will affect quality. Therefore, quantity competition, price competition and the worry about quality are particularly big challenges and perplexities that we need to face and resolve this year. To handle such difficulties and challenges and face uncertainties in this process, I think enterprises must reduce quality risks and guarantee quality. Ideally, we should do something certain with the premise of an uncertain future.”
Future Driving Point of Photovoltaic Industry
Li Weichun: “Every year in the photovoltaic industry, we encounter many problems such as subsidies, rationed power supply, as well as policies and trade barriers, but we can always overcome them one by one. On the contrary, there has been improved technology, ensuring quality and improved cost competitiveness, which has pushed the photovoltaic industry to new heights. That’s why we say there are always more solutions than problems. From this perspective, what are future opportunities for photovoltaic development according to you? What is the driving point of photovoltaic development in the future? In the long run, what kind of innovation and breakthrough is needed to better reflect the advantages and value of the photovoltaic industry?”
Ouyang Jiagan // BIPV and PV energy storage market application
“First, as Mr. Shen just said, I also think that BIPV’s market space is infinite, and we only need to identify the opportunities or value point for it. Second, with the increase in installed PV capacity and application of energy storage with cost reduction, we have actually created a third product line in new energy storage. This market, as I have understood over the past few months, does have great potential for development in different segments, including mobile power, home energy storage, and industrial and commercial energy storage and is set to boom over the next decade. So, I think these are two opportunities that we are going to grasp next.”
Jin Hao // New materials and technology
“In my opinion, this is an open question. New material can break through the limits of existing silicon materials, and we can see that battery efficiency is about five or six points higher compared to the past 10 years. An increase of three or four more points in terms of efficiency might be the limit of a pure silicon battery. I think there are opportunities for us to break through the limit of silicon systems and even with non-silicon materials, just like some projects being implemented by the Ministry of Science and Technology at present. These are the things that are really moving PV from first generation technology to second generation technology.”
Duan Tao //Optimizers and energy storage
“In some of the fastest growing areas that we have seen, the first one I want to point out is the development of optimizers and micro inverters, which is a very fast growing area in terms of demand. It also represents how the photovoltaic industry has gradually evolved into a more subdivided and more efficient way of energy utilization from its original extensive development. The other area is energy storage. With further development of PV, it is not necessary to only generate and use electricity right away, but also store excess power in an energy storage device for use during peak hours at night.”
He Shuangquan // Do our job well and promote globalization
“From our enterprise’s perspective, the first point is to do the right thing at the right time. No matter how the industry changes, I agree that this change is a good trend moving forward. Specifically, we will strengthen cooperation with big capital partners overseas and change our cooperation direction from storage sales to project development, driving component sales. At the same time, we can obtain some benefits of project development, helping enterprises to develop more soundly. Regarding the second point, we will promote business philosophy ceaselessly and globalization and localization services to better serve new and old customers across the world.”
Shen Hui // Expanding photovoltaic application
“Photovoltaic development will certainly be diversified. Unlike conventional energy generation, photovoltaic generation is the product that can be combined with home appliances, basic necessities of life and various fields like vehicles, trains and aerospace. Since electricity is as indispensable as grain, it can be transformed into the product with integrated functions. I believe that solar power is everywhere, thus photovoltaic generation can be applied in numerous fields to form a diversified market.”
Wu Liangcai // Energy management
“WeChat has dominated our social network and provides us with e-wallet services. In terms of photovoltaic generation, can it become the main energy source for charging piles? Can roof tiles be replaced with photovoltaics? Can your sunroom also be installed with photovoltaics? In fact, having a single room manage all energy needs is a strategy that many people are considering or have already implemented. A large room can replace part of hydroelectric power, thermal power and nuclear power with photovoltaic power. We have numerous ideas about implementing such a plan. I agree with Mr. Shen’s words that solar power is everywhere. The sun always rises whether you stay within a room or not. A room installed with photovoltaics can collect and store solar power and make full use of it. That is the goal of photovoltaic generation in future.”
Zhou Wei // Persistence and breakthrough
“Firstly, I am confident about the development of photovoltaic generation. China’s photovoltaic generation industry’s short-term goal is to “dominate the country” by virtue of huge amounts of power generation, affordable price and high quality. Secondly, China’s photovoltaic generation industry has a major mission since its industry and technology have taken a leading position in the world. I think industrial breakthrough is required to achieve further development. Finally, persistence is also a necessary element. Personnel engaged in the photovoltaic generation industry are indomitable. Although industry enterprises have experienced ups and downs over the years, some of them survive with persistent spirit. In future, we should insist on sound and sustainable development of the industry.”
Market Structure of Photovoltaic Enterprises in 2019
Li Weichun: “Could you please share your or your company’s market structure and plan for the photovoltaic market in 2019?”
Ouyang Jiagan: “We will mainly expand our overseas distributed photovoltaic and new energy storage markets, and further strengthen the market for Chinese photovoltaic utilization and DI grid-connected system for small and medium-sized industries and commercial establishments.”
Jin Hao: “Technology will be more diversified.”
Duan Tao: “Our plan has two parts. Firstly, we will carry out continuous R&D investment to serve the public in new application fields. Secondly, everybody mentioned regional changes brought by policies last year. We have dozens of plants all over the world, which can better serve our customers’ overseas factories.”
He Shuangquan: “We have a clear business strategy for 2019. Regarding the international market, we will steadily increase our global market share and improve the global sales system. As for our company itself, we will firmly promote refined management and cost control.”
Wu Liangcai: “We have set three goals. The main goal for this year is to ensure household grid connection, household energy storage and grid connection for small and medium-sized industries and commercial establishments. We will do our best to achieve this goal. In terms of market, we aim at achieving “peak-load shifting” by leveraging development of different markets based on the global market, to ensure sustainable and healthy development.”
Zhou Wei: “Trina Solar adheres to a development strategy of innovation, brand and globalization. During the new development period, Trina Solar has established a new platform, intelligence and industry-finance integration platform. The success of the platform and intelligence-based solutions will help us conduct lean management and improve efficiency, while industry-finance integration will enable us to provide better solutions for customers who require financial support.
