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The conclusion of the annual SNEC 2018 event in Shanghai showed that the mass production of new technologies and products is expected to enter the official implementation phase, but there is still a lack of support in terms of supply chain prices, especially multi-si supply chain prices, which continued to decline. Mono-si wafer leading manufacturers announced a reduction in prices on May 25 and were significantly affected by the recent trend of decrease in the price of multi-siproducts. Next, price reduction pressure will further affect the upstream polysilicon and cause price instability; due to unexpected demand intensity, the future price trend of multi-si PV cell and module won’t be optimistic.
Polysilicon
Not many new deals have been generated this week. The deals mainly came from previous orders. Some manufacturers of multi-si material have started to cut or even discontinue production, and both mono-si and multi-si manufacturers are considering conducting the annual overhaul in advance, with the current expected off-season demand. So far, the overall price for mono-si material has come to around RMB 120/Kg, and multi-si material price has decreased to around RMB 105/Kg. In addition, the weak demand of multi-si products for downstream market has affected the balance between supply and demand of multi-si material; in contrast, benefiting from the demand driven by 630 installation rush, mono-si material didn’t have any price reduction problem for the time being. However, if multi-si material price continues to fall, it is estimated to affect mono-si material price in July.
Si-wafer
Affected by the continuous decline in multi-si wafer prices, the first-tier manufacturers of mono-si wafer have slightly reduced their price, respectively, to RMB 4.2/Pc in China and US$0.58/Pc overseas. In terms of multi-si wafer, some first-tier manufacturers have started to reduce production in order to lower inventory. Some small- and medium-sized manufacturers underwent operational difficulties and they sold in low prices. The overall price is still in decline, and the decline even intensified. So far, multi-si wafer price has been on the verge of breaking below RMB 3.0/Pc. The price difference between mono-si and multi-si wafer came to RMB 1.2/Pc; China’s overseas prices have also reached around US$0.42/Pc. They will continue to decrease in the coming weeks.
PV cell
This week, PV cell price showed two different trends. With the arrival of China’s domestic 630 installation rush, the demand of mono-si products on the market is heating, and the upstream mono-si wafer is slightly in short supply. Whether it is high efficiency or general efficiency products, the prices increased. The domestic price in China fell within RMB 1.54-1.60/W, while overseas price reached US$0.206-0.235/W. This week, multi-si PV cell price has not changed much and the market still showed a wait-and-see attitude. Chinese and overseas prices came to RMB 1.32/W and US$0.175/W respectively. In the future, multi-si PV cell price is expected to drop continuously.
Module
Multi-si module price was flat this week, mainly due to the continued strong atmosphere of manufacturers watching; prices in China and abroad were within the range of RMB 2.4-2.48/W and US$0.34-0.35/W, respectively. Mono-si module price was linked with upstream PV cell price. Due to the due date of June 30, there was demand momentum for high efficiency or general efficiency mono-si modules on the market. China’s domestic price rose to RMB 2.6-2.65/W. Overseas price reached US$0.38-0.41/W. The momentum is expected to remain above two or three weeks.