Production capacity accounts for more than 90% of the world
Photovoltaic glass is a special glass that is laminated into a solar cell, can use solar radiation to generate electricity, and has related current extraction devices and cables. It is composed of low-iron glass, solar cells, film, back glass, and special metal wires. The solar cell is sealed between a piece of low-iron glass and a back glass through a film. Glass products.
As one of solar cell modules, according to SOLARZOOM data, photovoltaic glass accounts for about 6% -7% of module costs. Among them, photovoltaic glass accounts for 7% of the cost of conventional modules and 6% of the cost of monocrystalline PERC modules, which is one of the highest proportion of photovoltaic auxiliary materials.
Compared with other glass, photovoltaic glass products have higher performance requirements. For example, the iron content of ordinary glass is generally above 0.2%, and the iron content of photovoltaic glass must be less than 0.015% according to national standards; according to the relevant standards, the photovoltaic transmittance of photovoltaic glass is ≥91.5%, and ordinary glass of the same thickness Only about 88-89%; in order to have high mechanical strength against external forces and thermal stress such as wind pressure, snow, hail, stone throwing, etc., photovoltaic glass usually uses tempered glass; photovoltaic glass has a certain amount of rainwater and harmful gases in the environment Corrosion resistance, high temperature resistance, thermal expansion coefficient must match the structural material.
Because of this, before 2006, due to the high entry barriers and low market demand, domestic photovoltaic glass products had not yet been industrialized. At that time, the photovoltaic glass market was basically composed of Saint-Gobain in France, Pilkington in the UK (acquired by Plate Glass), and Asahi Glass in Japan. 4. Four foreign companies have monopolized the Japanese board glass industry. Domestic photovoltaic module companies rely entirely on imported photovoltaic glass for production. The import price of photovoltaic glass is as high as 80 yuan / square meter.
After 2006, with the rapid development of the photovoltaic industry, driven by the further expansion of market demand and profits, the domestic photovoltaic glass industry has begun to develop. Glass companies represented by Follett Glass have carried out technological research and development and introduction of photovoltaic glass production lines. , To achieve the localization of photovoltaic glass.
Around 2016, the domestic photovoltaic glass industry has completed the transition from dependence on imports to substitution of imports in about ten years. Large domestic glass companies have begun to build factories overseas. For example, Xinyi Solar has established a production base in Malaysia. Follett Glass has also started to build production lines in Vietnam. Foreign companies such as Asahi Glass have withdrawn from the photovoltaic glass market, and companies such as Saint-Gobain only have smaller capacity. Kilns are still in production.
At present, China has become the world's largest producer of photovoltaic glass. As of 2018, China's photovoltaic glass production capacity and output accounted for more than 90% of the world. At the same time, China has also become the world's largest exporter of photovoltaic glass, the main export destinations include the United States, Japan, Southeast Asia and other countries and regions.
Will benefit from growth in photovoltaic installed capacity
Affected by changes in domestic policies, domestic installed capacity declined in 2018, with an additional installed capacity of 43GW, a year-on-year decrease of 18%. Although the new installed capacity has declined, China is still the world's largest new photovoltaic installed country. In 2018, China's new PV installations accounted for 40% of the world's total.
According to the current development situation, it is optimistic to estimate that the new photovoltaic installed capacity will rise steadily after 2020, and is expected to reach 70GW by 2025. Under conservative circumstances, during the period of 2019-2025, the new photovoltaic installed capacity may not reach the level of 2017, but it will maintain a small increase.
Benefiting from the growth of downstream photovoltaic installations, the photovoltaic glass industry has a bright future and a broad market space. At the same time, as the world's largest producer of photovoltaic glass, in addition to meeting domestic market demand, China's photovoltaic glass products have also grown rapidly in exports, especially in the European market.
In September 2018, the EU's anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures for photovoltaic products in China have ended after expiration, and the Sino-European photovoltaic trade has returned to normal market conditions. This will help increase domestic shipments of components to the European Union, which will in turn drive photovoltaic glass demand. In addition, according to the European Commission, the EU's direct anti-dumping measures against China's photovoltaic glass imports will also expire in May 2019, which will further stimulate the direct export of domestic photovoltaic glass to the EU.