As the world accelerates CO2 emissions reduction, countries across the globe scale up their investment in renewable energy, driving up demand for solar. At present, the solar industry is experiencing a transition, with new techniques seeking to drive costs down and efficiency up emerging in the supply chain. Which technology will become the next mainstream, which one is more economically efficient? These are all variables that will affect the development of the industry.
 

Wafer

Making wafers thinner and larger has become a mainstream technique in the wafer segment as it helps reduce costs significantly. Persistently high polysilicon prices in 2022 has accelerated wafer thinning progress. Meanwhile, it’s getting difficult for regular diamond wire to thin down further, and thus whether tungsten diamond wire will replace regular diamond wire also raises industry attention.
 

Cell

As PERC has reached its theoretically limit in terms of efficiency improvement, n-type TOPCon and HJT, as well as xBC, may become the next mainstream after PERC with better performance in theoretical efficiency. TOPCon technique is developing the fastest due to its compatibility with PERC and lower costs. In 2023, TOPCon is likely to account for 20% of total shipment. HJT, on the other hand, may see capacity reaching 40 GW following the capacity expansion of Huasun, Akcome, and Risen. There’s potential for HJT technique to accelerate its penetration in the market, as its product ecosystem becomes comprehensive and economies of scale improves. As of xBC, Longi and Aiko have planned to expand HPBC and ABC, xBC capacity is likely to exceed 20 GW in 2023. With continued improvement in yield rates and costs, xBC technique has potential to grab higher market share in the distributed generation sector with its advantages in appearance and power output.
 

Module

Module manufacturers have always been pursuing higher efficiency and lower costs. As large format secures its dominate position, module makers returned to focus on improving efficiency and costs. As n-type technology penetrates the market, encapsulant containing POE will see demand grow, as n-type module assembly requires better waterproof. This will cause demand for resin to change. The industry also pays high attention to whether EVA and POE resin supply can satisfy demand from regular modules and n-type modules.

InfoLink will hold a webinar titled “Net-zero challenges: Trends and movements shaking up solar and energy storage markets” on Nov. 23 in collaboration with Reccessary. At this webinar, senior analyst Derek Zhao will analyze the technology developments in each segment of the solar supply chain and provides strategies to help businesses make decision that correspond to market trends.

Speaker

InfoLink

Dr. Yuan Fang-wei
Senior ESS Analyst

Dora Zhao 
Senior Solar Analyst

Derek Zhao 
Senior Solar Analyst

Amy Fang 
Senior Solar Analyst

Reccessary

Judy Chao 
Researcher