Polysilicon
The prices of polysilicon generally were stabilized this week. At the moment most of the polysilicon manufacturers in the market have already secured orders for June. The sales this week was mostly replenishment in small volume. The sale prices were roughly the same as last week. Regarding the mono-grade polysilicon, the average price was only slightly reduced to RMB 57 /kg in the Chinese market.
Regarding the supply of polysilicon, 2 Chinese companies have completed their maintenance and repair after June. Meanwhile, the companies which planned to carry out the facility maintenance have delayed their plans. And the supply of polysilicon has risen in the short term, as a result. Despite the fact that the downstream segments seemed to be recovering, the polysilicon segment has yet to demonstrate any substantial increase in demand resulting from restocking activities.
Wafers
This week, the overall trend of wafer prices and sale volume are stabilized. Following the price adjustment of wafer manufacturers, the quoted prices of mono-Si wafers were generally stable this week. The demand for M6 wafers continues to inspire optimism, whereas the supply has not reached the level of stability yet. Consequently, in the Chinese market, the average price of wafers was stabilized at RMB 2.55 /pc. And in the non-Chinese markets, the average price was stabilized at US$0.315 /pc.
The prices of multi-Si wafers, on the other hand, were stable and ranged between RMB 1.08-1.52 /pc. However, due to the low demand, the overall operating rate was low. Notwithstanding the gradually decreasing market supply, the inventory was still digested slowly due to the weak demand.
PV Cells
The prices of PV cells showed a stable trend this week. Some quoted prices of multi-Si cells were showing signs of economic recovery, mainly due to the increased order visibility in the non-Chinese market. Plus, some projects involved multi-Si cells have been activated in the Chinese market. Overall, the market recovery of multi-Si cells was nevertheless not fast enough to get multi-Si cell manufacturers to resume production. A wait-and-see sentiment has taken hold of the majority of the market. Consequently, the average price of multi-Si cells was stable and remained at RMB 0.5 /W in the Chinese market this week.
Driven by the 630-deadline, the overall sale price and volume of mono-Si cells maintained stability. And the demand for 166mm solar cells was almost as high as the demand for G1 cells. After a wave of new manufacturing capacity becoming available in each segment of the supply chain in the second half of the year, the market demand will be even stronger for M6 cells.
Modules
Regarding the supply chain, the module price market showed a slight downward trend this week. Judging from the recent successful bids of the project in the Chinese market, the overall quoted prices of modules continued to decline. With the preparation of the 630-projects coming to an end, coupled with low order visibility, these factors have created a temporary void in market demand. In order to maintain the operating rate, some companies continued to boost their sales by lowering their prices, which led to the price war in the market. Both of the prices of the multi- and mono-Si products continued to fall. The average prices of the general multi-Si (275W-280W) and the superior high- efficiency mono-Si (>320W/385W) modules have been slightly lowered to RMB 1.390 /W and RMB 1.620 /W, respectively at the moment. It is worth noting that the leading manufacturers of photovoltaic glass all postponed the date of production resumption and the commissioning of new production lines at this stage. Some manufacturers of the double-glass products, which were in short supply, have already tried to raise prices.
Regarding the non-Chinese markets, the United States and European countries were lifting the lockdown one after another. The pandemic in India and South America, on the other hand, was still spreading rapidly. The overall operation resumption in the market progressed at a more cautious pace. The lack of demand further drove the prices of the supply chain. The average price of the general mono-Si (305-310W) modules has dropped to US$0.26 /W at the moment. And in the non-Chinese market, the prices of the superior high-efficiency mono-Si (>320W/385W) have fallen by more than 5% from last week. And the average price dropped to US$0.206 /W.
(Analysis provided by Sharon Chen, analyst at EnergyTrend. Translated by Emma Hsu, translator of TrendForce Corp.)
(Photo from pixabay)