Weekly Solar Market Price Trends: Mainland China Report

Solarzoom Solar Market Report Aug 6-Aug 10, 2012

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Si material

Currently, the main quotation of domestic level-1 silicon material stands at 155 Yuan/kg, and 145 Yuan/kg for level-2 ones. Concerning the imported silicon material, the price of level-1 is $20.88/kg, and $20.21/kg for level-2.

This week, the price of Si materials had no change. At present, most domestic silicon material makers who have stopped their operation are keeping their eyes on the market trends, while several of them appear to have recovered their former production levels. As to some large-scaled manufacturers who are maintaining production, their utilization is favorable, and since they usually sell their goods to regular clients, their shipment volume is also stable. However, plenty of manufacturers reflect that they are suffering great financial pressure since the prices have been below their operation cost, and what’s worse, there are many difficulties in collecting receivables. For the moment, the national AD&CVD case against poly crystalline silicon has not had impact on the whole industry, but it is said by industry sources that the first arbitration will start soon, maybe within two months.

Wafer

The price of wafer kept falling this week. Currently, concerning 125mm*125mm mono-c-Si wafer, the price of tier-1 suppliers stands at 5.90 Yuan/pc and 5.30 Yuan/pc for tier-2. As to 156mm*156mm mono-c-Si wafer，the price of tier 1 suppliers is at 9.30 Yuan/pc, and 9.00 Yuan/pc for tier-2 ones. Also, in terms of 156mm*156mm poly-c-Si wafer, the price of tier-1 suppliers has reached 7.5 Yuan/pc, and 7.1 Yuan/pc for tier-2 ones.

Affected by the decreasing price of the PV module, the domestic wafer market has maintained the recent downtrend. Although the demand has increased in recent days, the sluggish market is still slow to improve due to serious over-capacity. In addition, some less competitive firms have not withdrawn from the market totally, and there are still differences among the quotations of various companies. The whole market is a bit chaotic at the moment. Many firms are financially depleted and faced with decreasing demand, which causes more and more enterprises to stop their production, cut down their outputs, and undersell their inventories, especially mono crystalline silicon firms. Some manufacturers started their technology improvement in order to cut the production cost.

Cell

For 125mm*125mm mono-c-Si cell, the price of tier-1 suppliers stands at 3.4 Yuan\W, and 3.00 Yuan\W for tier-2 ones. With regard to 156mm*156mm mono-c-Si cell，the price of tier-1 suppliers is at 3.50 Yuan/W, and 3.10 Yuan\W for tier-2 ones. For 156mm*156mm poly-c-Si cell, the price of tier-1 suppliers has reached 2.90 Yuan/W, and 2.60 Yuan\W for tier-2 ones.

This week, the price of mono-c-Si wafer saw no fluctuation, but as to 156mm*156mm poly-c-Si wafer, the price of tier-2 suppliers dropped 3.07%. Affected by both the overcapacity and the low price of PV modules, the cell market remains gloomy. An EU announcement is expected in September regarding the AD&CVD case against modules from China, which will likely further shrink the demand for cells. Restructuring, elimination of less competitive capacity and exploring the domestic (China) market could help to develop the solar cell market again.

Module

With regard to 190W mono-c-Si module, the price of 1st-tier suppliers stands at 4.90 Yuan/W, and 4.55 Yuan/W for 2nd-tier ones. For the 245W mono-c-Si crystalline module, the price of 1st-tier suppliers is at 5.35 Yuan/W, and 5.00 Yuan/W for 2nd-tier ones. In terms of 230W poly-c-Si crystalline module, the price of 1st-tier suppliers has reached 4.75 Yuan/W, and 4.40 Yuan/W for 2nd-tier ones. Considering 195W mono-c-Si module, the main price of 1st-tier suppliers stands at 5.20 Yuan/W, and 4.70 Yuan/W for 2nd-tier ones. Concerning 250W mono-c-Si module, the price of 1st-tier suppliers is 5.50 Yuan/W, and 5.1 Yuan/W for 2nd-tier ones. When it comes to 240W poly-c-Si module, the price of 1st-tier suppliers is 4.90 Yuan/W, and 4.60 Yuan/W for 2nd-tier ones.

This week, the price of PV module fell slightly. Nowadays, since the whole PV market is gloomy, both the shipment and turnover in Europe is unfavorable. At present, most buyers are mainly distributors and they basically purchase goods by forcing down the price according to their needs. However, some modules manufacturers reduce their price to attract customers. Now, the demands in the Japanese market focus on mono-c-Si modules; the price is stable and they are usually bought with cash. Due to the AD&CVD case in Europe, German buyers are getting more cautious, and they always extend the payment cycle. As a result, several manufacturers are under financial strain. Although several manufacturers reduce their quotations on purpose, it still doesn’t help the sluggish market.     

Tier-one companies include the U.S and HK stock market listed entities, with large capacity and product circulation in the market, like Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd. (ADR)(NYSE:STP), Yingli Green Energy Hold. Co. Ltd. (ADR) (NYSE: YGE), Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ), Trina Solar Limited (NYSE: TSL), JA Solar Holdings Co., Ltd. (ADR)(NASDAQ: JASO) and ReneSola Ltd. (ADR)(NYSE: SOL)

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