Chinese PV Industry Brief: More glass, module production capacity and a 400 MW solar park

China’s second-largest glass manufacturer, Kibing Group, announced on Monday that it signed an agreement with the government of Dongshan County, in the Fujian province, for the deployment of new PV glass production lines and the retrofitting of its existing lines. The company plans to invest around RMB4 billion (US$607 million) in this expansion plan, which is expected to be implemented within two years. Three of its existing lines will be upgraded to produce advanced, ultra-clear transparent conductive oxide (TCO) PV glass.

State-run China Energy Investment Corp. (CEIC) said this week that one of its units has signed an agreement with the government of Wushi county, in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, for the construction of a solar PV park with a total capacity of 400 MW. The estimated investment in the project is around RMB1.64 billion. Its first, 200 MW phase will be launched next year and completed by the end of 2023 at a cost of around RMB3.90/W (US$0.59). Phase II will also have a capacity of 200 MW and will be completed between 2024 to 2025, at a cost of RMB3.20/W.

Chinese solar module manufacturer CECEP announced on Friday it started construction on its solar cell and module factory in Zhenjiang City, in Jiangsu province. The manufacturing facility will have a capacity of 20 GW for solar cells and 4.5 GW for PV modules. In its first phase, which is expected to be finalized within 12 months, cell capacity will reach 6.5 GW and panel capacity 1.5 GW. According to CECEP, all new lines will be compatible with wafer sizes of both 182mm and 210mm.

Hong Kong-listed solar manufacturer Solargiga on Friday revealed its plans to expand PV module production capacity by raising its stake in the Jiangsu Yueyang Photovoltaic Technology Co Ltd business, which has an annual panel capacity of 2 GW. Solargiga, which held a 28% interest in the business via subsidiary Jinzhou Yangguang, raised its stake to 55% after injecting RMB100 million (US$15.2 million) into the business, with the stated aim of increasing Jiangsu Yueyang’s module production capacity.