Polysilicon
The price of polysilicon continued to rise this week, and the market remained on an upward trajectory. Impacted by the insufficient supply of polysilicon in the market, the polysilicon companies that were still in production have raised their prices one after another. The overall price increase in the past two weeks has exceeded 15% on average. The sale price of mono-grade polysilicon, in particular, has increased by more than 10% on average. And the quoted prices have increased to RMB80-95/W. However, not many orders involving mono-grade polysilicon were signed this week, as most orders were finalized as early as the beginning of the month.
Observing the subsequent price trend of polysilicon, it is expected that the businesses would resume their operation in October, given that there are still four manufacturers carrying out maintenance, which are concentrated in Xinjiang. And the relief policies for the resumption of production and operation as well as the logistics and transportation were introduced one after another. What is certain is that the supply of polysilicon will remain on the low side this month. And in the downstream wafer segment, more manufacturing capacity continues to become available. The increased demand provides enough thrust to propel the polysilicon prices upward.
Wafers
The price of wafers continued to rise this week, but the overall quoted prices showed a slightly mixed trend. The quoted prices of upstream polysilicon continued to rise, whereas the end-market demand has not picked up significantly. Cells and modules continue to be under pressure as a result. The leading wafer manufacturer announced that it will adjust its prices according to the changes in the quoted prices of upstream polysilicon, and the overall prices in the wafer segment have indeed been rising to a certain extent. However, the 1st- and 2nd-tier businesses have different levels of bargaining power. Therefore the extent of increase varies. The overall volume of sales this week was on the small side. Before the prices have stabilized in the industry chain, a wait-and-see sentiment is taking hold of the markets. Consequently, the price of G1 mono-Si wafers rose slightly to RMB2.83-2.95/Pc this week. And the average price of M6 mono-Si wafers rose to RMB3.03/Pc, pushing the price difference between G1 and M6 mono-Si wafers to RMB 0.13.
PV Cells
This week, cell prices continued to rise, especially the mono-Si products. The first-tier cell manufacturer increased the cell prices after SNEC took place. The extent of increase was as high as 9%. Most mono-Si cell businesses also followed up with the increase. However, the actual sale prices remained much the same as before. This week, the price of G1 mono-Si cells remained stable at RMB0.88-0.97/W. And the price of M6 mono-Si cells slightly increased to RMB0.89-0.97/W.
With the gradual lift of the shutdown in the overseas markets, the demand for multi-Si cells has been guaranteed to a certain extent. The overall sale prices still rose slightly this week. The average price of multi-Si cells rose to RMB0.55/W and US$0.089/W in the Chinese and non-Chinese markets, respectively. Observing the subsequent trend of multi-Si products, there is no obvious factor to maintain the momentum. The overall multi-Si market is still not robust enough. And the demand may be lowered again.
Modules
The module segment continued to be under pressure this week. Some module manufacturers increased their prices on the grounds of cost increases. However, the overall transaction volume was relatively small this week. First-tier businesses or vertically integrated manufacturers still have bargaining power, and the module prices rose slightly. The second- and third-tier companies have also increased their prices due to changes in the costs. However, the end market, which was under pressure from grid connection deadlines and price increases, has stopped the procurement. In the face of dilemma, a small number of module manufacturers considered reducing the operating rate to respond to market changes.
Regarding the overseas markets, Spain bounced back significantly from the pandemic, whereas India and Brazil continued its downward spiral. It is expected that it will take time for the overall market to fully recover. The overall module prices have stopped the plunge and rebounded in the non-Chinese markets this week. The prices of most products have slightly increased by US$0.01~0.015/W. The price of the high-efficiency multi-Si (325W-330W (72P)) has reached US$0.19-0.23/W. The price of the superior high-efficiency mono-Si (>325W/385W) modules has increased to US$0.204-0.325/W.