The numbers given for 2007 production capacity vary quite significantly from 1,225 to 4,550 and 8,900. The same is true for the 2010 figures: 29,050 to 84,500. However, despite the discrepancies, it is clear that there is a strong drive for building up its own silicon feedstock supply industry. This development has to be seen in the light of the PRC’s strategy to diversify its energy supply system and overcome the existing energy shortage.
Why is this of particular interest? During the China Development Forum 2003, it was highlighted that China’s primary energy demand will reach 2.3 billion toe in 2020 or 253% of the 2000 consumption if business-as-usual (BAU) occurs. Under such a scenario the electricity demand would be 4,200 TWh by 2020.
This development presents a reason to press for additional Government policies supporting the introduction of energy efficiency measures and renewable energy sources. With the proposed measures, fossil energy demand would still grow, though considerably slower than in the case of BAU. The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of China endorsed the Renewable Energy Law on 28 February 2005. At the same time as the law was passed, the Chinese Government set a target for renewable energy to contribute 10% of the country’s gross energy consumption by 2020, a huge increase from the current 1%. The Renewable Energy Law went into effect on 1 January 2006, but no specific rate was set for electricity from Photovoltaic installations.
The 2006 Report on the Development of the Photovoltaic Industry in China, by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and World Bank (WB), estimates a market of 130 MW in 2010. The report states that the imbalance between solar cell production and domestic market development impedes not only the sustainable development of energy sources in China, but also the healthy development of the PV industry.
In the National Outlines for Medium and Long-term Planning for Scientific and Technological Development (2006-2020), solar energy is listed as a priority theme. New and renewable energy technologies: to develop lowcost, large-scale renewable energy development and utilization technologies, large-scale wind power generation equipment; to develop technology of Photovoltaic cells with high cost-effect ratio and its utilisation; to develop solar power generation technology and study integration of solar powered buildings; to develop technologies of fuel cells, hydropower, biomass energy, hydrogen energy, geothermal energy, ocean energy, biogas, etc.
Also the National Medium-and-Long Term Renewable Energy Development Plan has listed solar Photovoltaic power generation as an important developing point. Within the National Basic Research Programme of China, the so-called 973 Programme, there is an additional topic on “Basic research of mass hydrogen production using solar energy”. With the support from national ministries and commissions, the top efficiency of China’s current lab PV cell is 21%, commercialised PV components and normal commercialized cells respectively have an efficiency of 14 – 15% and 10 – 13%. China has reduced the production cost of solar PV cells and the price of solar cells has gradually declined from the 40 RMB/Wp (4.40 €/Wp) in 2000. In July 2009, the National Energy Administration (NEA) has set a subsidized price for solar power at 1.09 RMB/kWh (0.112 €/kWh).
It should be noted, that so far this is for a single project in Gansu, Dunhuang and serves as a reference. However, according to the Energy Research Institute under the National Development and Reform Commission, this is not sufficient for Chinese companies to be profitable yet. At the moment, the companies need between 1.3 and 1.5 RMB/kWh (0.134 and 0.155 €/kWh) to become profitable. Therefore, the Institute is calling on the Government to adjust the prices to accelerate the domestic market growth.
When the electricity generation cost with solar PV systems declines to some 1 RMB/kWh (0.103 €/kWh) in 2010/11, this will be within the cost price of routine power generation. In 21 July 2009 a joint notice was release by the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Science and Technology and the National Energy Administration announcing subsidies for PV demonstration projects in the following two to three years through a programme called “Golden Sun”. The Government will subsidize 50% of total investment in PV power generation systems and power transmission facilities in on-grid projects, and 70% for independent projects, according to the notice. The available budget should allow about 500 MW of PV installations.
A new plan to foster the development of “new energy” sources, including wind, solar and nuclear is expected to be published by the end of this year. According to statements of senior Government officials published in various Chinese media, investment in new energy under this Energy Revitalization Plan will reach more than RMB 3 trillion (€ 309 billion) and investments in smart-grids will exceed RMB 4 trillion (€ 436 billion) by the next decade.
PV Resources and Utilisation
The PRC’s continental solar power potential is estimated at 1,680 billion toe (equivalent to 19,536,000 TWh) per year. One percent of China’s continental area, with 15% transformation efficiency, could supply 29,304 TWh of solar energy. That is 189% of the world-wide electricity consumption in 2001. The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of China endorsed the Renewable Energy Law on 28 February 2005. Although the Renewable Energy Law went into effect on 1 January 2006, the impact on Photovoltaic installations in China is however still limited, due to the fact that no tariff has yet been set for PV. The main features of the Law are listed below:
Energy Authorities of the State Council are responsible for implementing and managing renewable The Government budget establishes a renewable energy development fund to support R&D and resource assessment;
The Government encourages and supports various types of grid-connected renewable energy power generation;
Grid enterprises shall purchase the power produced with renewable energy within the coverage of their power grid, and provide grid-connection service;
The grid-connection price of renewable energy power generation shall be determined by the price authorities, and the excess shall be shared in the power selling price within the coverage of the grid;
The Law became effective in January 2006.
During the China Renewable Energy Development Strategy Workshop 2005, Wang Sicheng, from the National Development and Reform Commission’s Energy Institute, presented the “Strategic Status of Photovoltaics in China”. The national target for the accumulated capacity of PV systems set in the Eleventh Five-Year Plan (2006 – 2010) was 500 MW in 2010. The predictions of the PV Market in China for 2020 were rather optimistic. The accumulated installed capacity was given as 30 GW and included 12 GW in the frame of the Chinese Large-Scale PV Development Plan, a project which was scheduled to start in 2010. However, due to the fact that at that time this plan did not receive official consideration the actual growth of PV installations was far below the required figures.
Therefore, the 2007 China Solar PV Report authored by the China Renewable Energy Industry Association, Greenpeace China, European PV Industry Association, and WWF, reduced the market predictions to 300 MW cumulative installed capacity in 2010. For 2020, two scenarios are given. The low target scenario predicts 1.8 GW, in line with the old Government policy, whereas a high target of 10 GW would be possible if strong support mechanisms were to be introduced.
In May 2009, SEMI’s PV Group published a White Paper entitled “China’s Solar Future”. China faces a rapidly increasing demand for energy, and the country is building a massive PV industry, representing all facets of the supply chain, from polysilicon feedstock, ingots and wafers to cells and modules. The report recommends an accelerated adoption of PV generated electric power in China to reach global average level of PV power generation by 2014.
The main policy recommendations of the report are:
Establish clear targets for PV installation. Adjust current national targets and achieve global average level by the year 2014, including adjustment of the 2010 target from 300 MW to 745 MW and the 2020 target from 1.8 GW to 28 GW.
Enact clear and easy-to-administer PV incentive policies that are suitable for China’s unique situations, using both market and legal mechanisms to encourage private investment in PV. Maintain the current rural electrification effort but priority should be given to grid-connected large scale power plants and building integrated systems.
Immediately implement a Government financed direct investment subsidy model at central and local levels, and effectively implement feed-in tariff programmes stipulated in the Renewable Energy Law. The White Paper also points out that despite the economic and social benefits of increasing solar power demand, China’s lack of PV demand might threaten Government solar incentives in other countries. Policy-makers in Europe, US and elsewhere may view China as the primary beneficiary of domestic economic policies that encourage PV demand, while China itself is not contributing to global fossil fuel reduction.
On 1 November 2006 a new law on energy-efficient construction, in order to promote the use of solar power to supply hot water and generate electricity, took effect in the city of Shenzhen. Projects which are unable to use solar power will require special permission from the Government otherwise they cannot be put on the market. By 2010, the Shenzhen Construction Bureau expects that 50% of the new buildings will install solar water heating systems and 20% of new buildings will use Photovoltaic electricity generation systems.
China’s RMB 4 trillion stimulus package included RMB 210 billion (€ 21.6 billion) for green energy programmes as announced in early March 2009. On 23 March 2009 the Chinese Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development [Mof 2009] announced a solar subsidy programme which immediately went into effect. It was suggested that 70% of the budget would be handled by the Provincial Finance Ministries. For 2009 the subsidy will be 20 RMB/Wp (2.06 €/Wp) for BIPV and 15 RMB/Wp (1.46 €/Wp) for roof top applications. The document neither mentions a cap on individual installations nor a cap for the total market. The subsidy will be paid as a 70% down payment and 30% after the final acceptance of the project. Eligible are all systems >50kW which have module efficiencies of >14% (polycrystalline modules), >16% (monocrystalline modules), or >6% (thin-film). Applications for grants apparently have to be made from 15 May to 30 August.
However, public comments from an official of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDR) indicate that issues like grid connection are not yet discussed sufficiently. One of the reasons is that none of the Ministries which announced the subsidy has jurisdiction over the grid. In addition to the solar subsidy programme which was announced on 23 March 2009 by the Chinese Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, Mof announced another support programme – the Golden Sun Programme – for pilot cities to support the use of renewable energies in buildings on 21 July 2009.
In April 2009, JLM Pacific Epoch reported that according to China Business News the Jiangsu Province plans to release a new plan to promote solar power applications soon. According to the plan, Jiangsu intends to reach building and rooftop installations of 10 MW in 2009; 50 MW including 40 MW of rooftop projects in 2010; and 200 MW including 180 MW of rooftop projects in 2011. The plan also mentions the possibility of establishing funds to provide project construction subsidies and risk guarantees, an executive of Jiangsu’s PV Industry Association stated. The plan stipulates further allocations of quotas to local companies.
A number of large scale Photovoltaic projects, ranging up to 1 GW were announced in the course of the last 18 months in China. How many of them will actually be realised to create a local market for solar Photovoltaic electricity systems, still has to be seen. With all these measures a doubling or even tripling of the market seems possible in 2009, as a starting point for the development of a GW size market from 2012 on. China is now aiming for 2 GW total installed solar capacity in 2011. In July 2009 the new Chinese energy stimulus plan revised the 2020 targets for installed solar capacity to 20 GW).
Solar Companies
This listing is far from being complete, due to the fact that more than 50 solar cell and more than 300 solar module companies exist in China. In addition, availability of information or data for some companies is very fragmentary.
1 Canadian Solar Inc.
Canadian Solar Inc. was founded in Canada in 2001 and was listed on NASDAQ in November 2006. CSI has established six wholly-owned manufacturing subsidiaries in China, manufacturing ingot /wafer (planned production in mid 2008), solar cells and solar modules. According to the company it achieved 120-150 MW of ingot and wafer capacity and 270 MW of cell capacity in 2008. For 2008 the company reported shipments of 167.5 MW.
2 Changzhou EGing Photovoltaic Technology Co. Ltd.
The company was founded in 2003 and works along the complete Photovoltaic industry value chain, from the production of mono-crystalline furnace, quartz crucible, 5-8 inch mono-crystalline silicon ingots supporting equipment of squaring and wire sawing, mono-crystalline silicon wafers, solar cells, and solar modules. According to the company, it has a production capacity of over 200 MW across the complete value chain of ingot, wafer, cell and modules.
3 China Sunergy (formerly CEEG Nanjing PV-Tech Co. Ltd.)
China Sunergy was established as CEEG Nanjing PV-Tech Co. (NJPV), a joint venture between the Chinese Electrical Equipment Group in Jiangsu and the Australian Photovoltaic Research Centre in 2004. China Sunergy went public in May 2007. At the end of 2008, the Company had five selective emitter (SE) cell lines, four HP lines, three capable of using multi-crystalline and mono-crystalline wafers, and one normal P-type line for multi-crystalline cells with a total nameplate capacity of 320 MW. For 2008 a production of 111 MW was reported by the company.
4 JA Solar Holding Co. Ltd.
JingAo Solar Co. Ltd. was established in May 2005 by the Hebei Jinglong Industry and Commerce Group Co. Ltd., the Australia Solar Energy Development Pty. Ltd. and Australia PV Science and Engineering Company. Commercial operation started in April 2006 and the company went public on 7 February 2007. According to the company, the production capacity should increase from 600 MW at the end of 2008 to 875 MW at the end of 2009. For 2008 the company reported shipments of 277 MW.
5 Jetion Holdings Ltd.
The group was founded in December 2004, went public in 2007, and manufactures solar cells and modules. According to the company, production capacity is 100 MW for solar cells and 60 MW for modules at the end of 2008. For 2008 the company reported a production of 65 MW solar cells. For 2008 shipments of 45 MW modules (made from own cells) and 19.6 MW of cells were reported.
6 NingBo Solar Electric Power Co. Ltd.
The company has been part of China PuTian Group since 2003. According to company information Ningbo has imported solar cell and module producing and assembling lines from America and Japan. According to the company, production capacity will be increased in 2009 from the current 200 MW to 350 MW.
7 Shanghai Solar Energy Science & Technology Co.
SSEC produces mono-crystalline and multi-crystalline solar cells. According to the company, current production capacity is 80 MWp and it is planned to increase it to 100 MW by 2010.
8 Shanghai Topsolar Green Energy Ltd.
Shanghai Topsolar Green Energy Co., Ltd is a joint stock company established by Shanghai Electric Group Holding Co., Ltd, Shanghai Jiao Da NanYang Co. Ltd, and Shanghai Zhenglong Technology Investment Co. Ltd. Current production capacity is 300 MW according to the company.
9 ShanShan Ulica Science & Technology Co. Ltd.
ShanShan Ulica Science & Technology Co.,Ltd, was founded in August 2005 as a joint venture between the ShanShan Group and Shanghai Ulica Solar Company. It is planned to increase the current production capacity from 20 MW to 100MW, but no date is set for it.
10 Shenzhen Topray Solar Co.Ltd.
The company was founded in 2002 and manufactures solar cells, solar chargers, solar lights, solar garden products and solar power systems, as well as solar charge controllers, solar fountain pumps and solar fan caps. For 2008 the company reported production capacities of 50 MW for dual junction amorphous silicon solar cells and 30 MW for mono and poly crystalline solar cells.
11 Solarfun Power Holdings
Solarfun was established in 2004 by the electricity metre manufacturer Lingyang Electronics. The first production line was completed at the end of 2004 and commercial production started in November 2005. The company went public in December 2006 and reported the completion of their production capacity expansion to 360 MW in the second quarter of 2008. For 2009 a further 60 MW expansion is planned. For 2008 total module shipments of 172.8 were reported by the company.
12 Suntech Power Co. Ltd.
Suntech Power Co. Ltd. is located in Wuxi. It was founded in January 2001 by Dr. Zhengrong Shi and went public in December 2005. Suntech specialises in the design, development, manufacturing and sale of Photovoltaic cells, modules and systems. For 2008 Suntech reported shipments of 497.5 MW and held 2rd place in the Top-10 list. The annual production capacity of Suntech Power was increased to 1 GW by the end of 2008. The takeover of the Japanese PV module manufacturer MSK was completed in June 2008. The company has a commitment to become the “lowest cost per watt” provider of PV solutions to customers world-wide.
13 Trina Solar Ltd, PRC
Trina Solar was founded in 1997 and went public in December 2006. The company has integrated product lines, from ingots to wafers and modules. In December 2005 a 30 MW mono-crystalline silicon wafer product line went into operation. According to the company the production capacity was 350 MW for each of ingot, wafer, cell and modules at the end of 2008. For 2008 shipments of 201 MW were reported.
14 Wuxi Shangpin Solar Energy Science & Technology Co. Ltd.
This is a UK invested company which specialises in R&D, manufacturing and sales of crystalline silicon solar cells, modules and PV powered products. According to the company, the first 25 MW production line was put into operation in April 2007 and the second followed in August 2008. An increase to 100 MW is planned for 2009.
15 Yingli Green Energy Holding Company Ltd.
Yingli Green Energy went public on 8 June 2007. The main operating subsidiary, Baoding Tianwei Yingli New Energy Resources Co. Ltd., is located in the Baoding National High-New Tech Industrial Development Zone. The company deals with the whole set from solar wafers, cell manufacturing and module production. On 29 April 2006 the ground-breaking ceremony was held for Yingli’s 3rd phase enlargement project, which aimed for production capacities of 500 MW for wafers, solar cells and modules at the end of 2008. The investment included a Photovoltaic System Research Centre and a Professional Training Centre as well. The first stage of this expansion to 200 MW was finished in July 2007 and the company reported that the expansion to 400 MW was done in the second half of 2008 and the expansion to 600 MW in the middle of 2009 is on track. The financial statement for 2008 gave shipments of 281.15 MW.
16 Yunnan Tianda Photovoltaic Co. Ltd.
The Yunnan Tianda Photovoltaic Co. is one of the oldest companies which make, design, sell and install solar modules and PV systems in China and was founded in 1977 as Yunnan Semi-Conductor Device Factory. In 2005, the production capacity of solar cells was extended to 35 MW and the production of 5 inch solar cells started. In 2006 the capacity was increased to 60 MW and in 2007 the production capacity of solar cells was extended to 100 MW. In April 2009 the company reported the signature of agreements with the Jiaxing Xiuzhou Industrial Park Management Committee to build a production facility with an aim of 100 MW/year in the first stage and 200 MW in the final stage.
17 Additional Solar Cell Companies
Aide Solar (Jiangsu Aide Solar Energy Technology Co. Ltd.) was founded in 2003 and formed a joint venture with the Taiwanese Panjit Group in November 2007. The company has a mono solar cells production line with 20 MW capacity and increased their solar modules production capacity to 150 MW in 2008. In 2009 an expansion to 200 MW module capacity and 80 MW cell capacity is foreseen.
Astronergy (Chint Solar Energy Science & Technology Co. Ltd.) was established as a member of the Chint Group in October 2006. The first production line of 25 MW for crystalline silicon cells and modules was installed in May 2007 and an increase of the production capacity to 100 MW was finished in July 2008. The company not only plans to reach 380 MW production capacity by 2010, but to “become the world’s leading thin-film PV producer”. On 3 July 2008 Oerlikon Solar announced that Chint Solar purchased a micromorph R R&D line and first-phase production equipment with plans to build the production capacity up to 180 MWp in 2010.
Baoding TianWei SolarFilms Co. Ltd. was set up in 2008. It is a subsidiary of Baoding TianWei Group Co., Ltd., a leading company in the China power transformer industry. In Phase I of the production, the set up has a capacity of 50MW and should begin commercial operation in the second half of 2009. The company plans to reach a capacity of 500 MW in 2015.
Best Solar Hi-Tech Co. Ltd. was set up by LDK Solar’s founder and CEO Xiaofeng Peng and started operations in February 2008. The company aims to produce amorphous/microcrystalline silicon thin-film modules and has contracted AMAT for the equipment. The groundbreaking for their “Site 1 in JinagSu SuZhou took place in February 2008. With an investment of 2.5 billion $ it has a design capacity of 1 GW to be realised in three phases. It is planned to start solar cell production in the 3rd Quarter of 2009. At their second site in JiangXi NanChang, also with a design capacity of 1 GW, groundbreaking took place in June 2008.
ENN Solar Energy (part of XinAo Group) was set up in the Langfang Economic and Technological Development Zone in 2007. In November 2007 ENN Solar Energy signed a contract with AMAT for a SunFab Thin-film production line to produce ultra-large 5.7m2 solar modules. The 50 MW line is planned to be the first phase of an expected 500 MW capacity plant. Start of commercial production is planned for the 2nd Quarter of 2009.
Nantong Qiangsheng Photovoltaic Technology Co. Ltd. (QS Solar, Shanghai, China) started the production of amorphous silicon thin-film solar with their new 25 MW production line in January 2008. The company announced that it would add two more production lines in 2008, bringing the total production capacity to 75 MW. The company plans to increase production capacity within the next three years to 500 MW.
Shanghai Chaori Solar Energy Science & Technology Co. Ltd. was established in June 2003. Production capacity was 15 MW in 2007 and the company planned to increase it to 40 MW in 2008.
Solar EnerTech Corp. is incorporated in the USA, but its factory is based in Shanghai, China. Solar EnerTech has established a manufacturing and research facility in Shanghai’s Jinqiao Modern Science and Technology Park. According to the company, production capacity was 50 MW of solar cells and modules at the end of 2008.
TaiZhou Sopray Solar Co. Ltd. was established in 2005 as a joint venture between Taizhou Luqiao Huanneng Lights Factory and Mr. Michael Ming. According to the company the annual output capacity of mono- and polycrystalline solar cells is 100MW, with plans to double to 200 MW in 2009.
Zhejiang Sunflower Light Energy Science & Technology Co. Ltd. (Sunowe) was funded by Hong Kong YauChong International Investment Group Co. Ltd., founded in 2004 in Shaoxing, Zhejiang. In a first phase it is planned to ramp up the annual production capacity to 100MW. According to the company, 75 MW are already operational.
Polysilicon, Ingot and Wafer Manufacturers
In the following chapter, some of the major market players in the PRC are briefly described. This listing is far from being complete, due to the fact that at the moment there are a large number of start-up activities. In addition, availability of information or data for some companies is very fragmentary.
1 GCL Silicon Holdings. Inc.
The company was founded in March 2006 and started the construction of their Xuzhou polysilicon plant (Jiangsu Zhongneng Polysilicon Technology Development Co. Ltd.) in July 2006. Phase I has a designated annual production capacity of 1,500 tons and the first shipments were made in October 2007. Full capacity was reached in March 2008. Phase II, with additional 1,500 tons, started commercial operation in July 2008 and reached full capacity by the end of 2008. Construction for Phase III with 15,000 tons was started in December 2007 and commercial production started one year later in December 2008. Full capacity of all three plants, with a total capacity of 18,000 tons, is expected for the end of 2009. A further expansion to 24,000 tons is planned to be finished in 2010. In August 2008 a joint-venture Taixing Zhongneng (Far East) Silicon Co. Ltd. started pilot production of trichlorsilane. Phase I will be 20,000 tons to be expanded to 60,000 tons
in the future.
2 EMEI Semiconductor Material Factory
EMEI is a subsidiary of Dongfang Electric Corp., located in Chengdu, and produces and markets semiconductor material silicon. One factory in Emeishan City has an annual production capacity of 200 tons. A second production line in Leshan with an annual polysilicon production capacity of 1,500 tons was scheduled to be completed at the end of 2008. For 2008 a production of 500 tons was reported.
3 LDK Solar Co. Ltd.
Jianxi LDK Solar Hi-Tech Co. Ltd. was set up by the Liouxin Group, which had 12,000 employees in 2005. The Liouxin Group makes personal protective equipment, power tools and elevators. With the formation of LDK Solar, the company is diversifying into solar energy products. LDK Solar went public in May 2007. According to the company the production capacity for solar wafers at the end of the 2008 was 1.46 GW. Further expansion plans foresee the production capacity growing to 2 GW at the end of 2009 and 3.2 GW in 2010. In 2008 the company announced that they completed the construction of and commenced polysilicon production in their 1,000 metric tons polysilicon plant. Further expansion with a 15,000 metric ton plant is underway and the company expects that the first phase of 5,000 metric tons reach mechanical completion at the end of the second quarter of 2009. Target output for 2009 is 2,000 and 3,000 metric tons of polysilicon.
4 ReneSola Ltd.
ReneSola, previously known as Zhejiang Yuhui Solar Energy Source Co. Ltd, was listed on London’s AIM Stock Market on 8 August 2006. ReneSola’s factories are based in China, but the company is registered in the British Virgin Islands. ReneSola is recycling silicon to make the wafers. In 2008 ReneSola completed and commissioned 50 MW of multicrystalline ingot and wafer capacity in the fourth quarter of 2008, achieving its annualised ingot production capacity target of 645 MW. Approximately 325 MW of the current capacity is monocrystalline and 320 MW is multicrystalline. The company expects to achieve a wafer manufacturing capacity of 825 MW by July 2009 and the implementation of additional production capacity expansion will be determined by market demand. In March 2008 the company announced that it had increased the planned annual polysilicon manufacturing capacity to 3,000 tonnes at the wholly-owned facility in Meishan, Sichuan Province, China. According to the 4th Quarter 2008 financial statement, construction of the polysilicon facility remains on schedule with many facets nearing or having reached completion. Piping, wiring and equipment installation is in progress with much of it in testing phase. Pipe rack transmission systems are complete and ready for testing. Construction of the trichlorosilane distillation towers and the control building are completed. Phase 1 of the facility is expected to reach mechanical completion in the middle of 2009 and Phase 2 mechanical completion is expected around the end of third quarter of 2009. Each phase will have annualised production capacity of 1,500 tons of polysilicon.
5 Additional Solar Silicon Companies
Chongqing Daqo New Energy Co. Ltd, Daqo New Energy is a subsidiary company of Daqo Group and was founded by Mega Stand International Limited in January 2008. The company started to build a high-purity polysilicon factory with an annual output of 3,300 tons in the first phase in Wanzhou. The first polysilicon production line with an annual output of 1,500 tons started operation in July 2008. The second production line is planned to be completed in March 2009. It is planned to expand the production capacity to about 10,000 tons by the end of 2010 and 15,300 tons by 2011.
China Enfi Engineering Corporation is an engineering company established by China Nonferrous Engineering and Research Institute. With ENFI’s own technology a ploysilicon project was set up. Luoyang China Silicon Hi-tech Corporation, which is the controlling subsidiary, was in charge of Phase I of the polysilicon project with an annual yield of 300 tons. The plant foundation was laid in June 2003 and the plant was put into operation in October 2005. The Phase II expansion project had an annual yield of 1,000 tons polysilicon and became operational in February 2007. Phase III with 2,000 tons
capacity is still not completed.
CSG Holding Co. Ltd., a Chinese glass producer is building up the complete silicon wafer based Photovoltaics value-chain. Yichang CSG Polysilicon Co. Ltd. was established in 2006 and is located in the Xiaoting Distict, Yichang City, Hubei Province. This polysilicon project is divided into three stages with unified planning of 4500 to 5000 tons per year of high-pure polysilicon. The first stage with 1500 tons/year was started on 22 October 2006 and put into operation at the end of 2008. Dongguan CSG Solar Glass Co. Ltd., was founded in October 2005 and is now operating two production lines for solar glass. An additional sub-company “CSG PVTECH CO. LTD” was founded in February of 2006, which started the pilot production of solar cells on a 25 MW line in June 2007. The main products are silicon solar cells and modules with a planned capacity of 450MW by 2010.
DALU New Energy Company is a subsidiary of DALU Industrial Investment Group established in 1993. The company plans a polysilicon production plant with a total capacity of 18,000 tons. The construction of the plant will be executed in three phases, i.e. Phase I: 2,500 t/a P; Phase II: 5,000 t/a and Phase III: 10,000 t/a.
Leshan Ledian Tianwei Silicone Science and Technology Co. Ltd. is a joint venture formally set up in January 2008 by Baoding Tianwei Baobian Electric Co. Ltd. And Leshan Electric Power Co. Ltd. The company will build a polycrystalline facility at Leshan of Sichuan province, with a capacity of 3000 t/a.
Luoyang Zhonggui Material Co. Ltd. The company is a joint venture of the American MEMC Company and the Chinese Sijia Semiconductor Company. The main products are multi-crystal silicon, single-crystal silicon and organic silicon. The production capacity is 500 tons and it is planned to increase it to 2000 tons.
Niking Technology Co. Ltd. was founded in 1998 and engaged in scientific research and purified polysilicon. According to the company their polysilicon plant construction has been completed. In 2008 a production of 300 tons of polysilicon was reported and the company plans to increase it’s capacity to 500 tons in 2009.
Nan’an Sanjing Silicon Refining Co., Ltd. was established in 1996. The corporative company includes Taining Sanjing Silicon Smelting Co. Ltd., Dehua Longtengfei Smelting Co. Ltd. and Xiamen Sunhope Silicon Products Co. Ltd. The company is engaged mainly in crude metal silicon mining, primary smelting, purification, refinement, exporting and its R&D. It presently possesses an annual processing capacity of approximately 40,000 tons of metal silicon.
Sichuan Xinguang Silicon Technology Co. Ltd. Constructed a production plant for silicon material and began commercial operation in February 2007. For 2007 a production of 230 tons and for 2008 a production capacity of 1,500 tons were reported. Sichuang Yongxiang Co. Ltd. was jointly established by the Tongwei Group and Giant Star Group in 2002. In July 2006, Leshan Yongxiang Silicon Co. Ltd. was established as a subsidiary. The company operates a 5,000 tons/year production of of trichlorosilane. In July 2007 the construction of a polysilicon plant with 1,000 tons/year capacity started with the total investment of RMB 5 billion. A further expansion of 10,000 tons/year polycrystalline silicon is planned. Current production is 1,000 tons/year.
Wuxi Zhongcai Technology Co. Ltd. is a subsidiary of Wuxi Zhongcai Group and was founded in 2006. The company has a 300 tons/year multicrystalline silicon production line (modified from Siemens technology).
Yaan Yongwang Silicon Industry Co., Ltd. is a subsidiary of the Hong Kong based Yongwang Silicon Industry Investment Co. The company is located in Yaan Industry Park an area with rich hydropower resources. According to the company it started with the trial production of its second 300 ton silicon line at the end of March 2009. The company also started the construction of a 3,000 ton poly-silicon factory and is aiming for 10,000 tons capacity in the long run.
6 Ingot and wafer Companies
JiangSu Shunda Group Corporation is based in Yangzhou. As a high-technology company it focuses on the Photovoltaic market and produces mono-crystalline ingots, and wafers and solar modules. According to Global Sources in 2009, the company has production capacities of 1,100 tons of silicon ingots, 350 million silicon wafers and 20 MW of solar cells.
Jinglong Industry and Commerce Group Co. Ltd. mainly produces monocrystalline silicon ingots and wafers, but also produces graphite products, quartz crucibles and chemical products. Jinglong produce mono-crystalline silicon mainly for the semiconductor industry, but also for solar cells. At present, Jinglong has an annual capacity of more than 2,600 tons and 80 million wafers. The company plans to increase production capacity to 5,000 tons in 2010.
Jinko Solar Co. Ltd. was founded by HK Paker Technology Ltd in 2006. The company’s main products are silicon wafers. In 2008 the production capacity of the company was approximately 185MW. For 2009 an expansion to 400 MW is planned. Luoyang Monocrystalline Silicon Co. Ltd. is a Stateowned company. The products of the company are: polycrystalline silicon (annual output 300 tons), monocrystalline silicon (annual output 15 tons), organosilicon γ1 (annual output 165 t), and 6-inch silicon polished wafer (annual output 2 million pieces).
Solargiga Energy Holdings Ltd. was incorporated in March 2007 and listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on 31 March 2008. According to the company the annual production ability of silicon ingots was 2000 tons and 56 million pieces of wafers at the end of 2008. For 2009 an increase to 4000 tons and 150 million pieces of wafers is planned.
Xi’an Lijing Electronic Technology Co. Ltd. was founded in December 1997 and is located in the “Western Silicon Valley” Xi’an High-tech Development Zone New Industrial Park. According to the company, production capacity is currently over 100 tons of mono-crystalline silicon and it plans to increase it to 500 tons. In addition, there are a considerable number of smaller and start-up companies along the whole value chain. However, information is still very fragmented and due to the rapid development quickly goes out of date. In the meantime, an increasing number of consultancies are providing market analysis and study tours. The PRC’s Long-Term Energy Plan calls for a considerable strengthening of the solar industry and all aspects from silicon production, wafering, cell and module manufacturing and distribution are covered. In January 2004 the Ministry of Science and Technology published a solar energy exploitation plan for the next five years, in order to promote the development of Photovoltaic technology and industry.
Chinese manufacturers are expected to export their products as Chinese PV production will grow much faster than the market. In China, Photovoltaics is discussed at the level of a strategic industry policy for the future.
Arnulf Jager-Waldau
European Commission, DG Joint Research Centre,
Institute for Energy, Renewable Energy Unit
