Author
Jonathan Gifford
Jonathan is currently contributing as a freelance editor at pv magazine. He joined pv magazine in 2011, became the Editor in Chief in 2014, and was the Founding Editor of pv magazine Australia. With a background in public broadcasting, Jonathan has been reporting on environmental and technology issues since 2005.
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Articles written by Jonathan Gifford
Oct 04, 2024
How will PV’s intellectual-property scuffles shake out?
Lawyers are doing brisk business as tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) solar technology moves into the mainstream. A series of patent infringement cases have been launched in the United States and Europe and their impacts are reverberating through the marketplace. How likely is it that winners will emerge?
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‘We expect to ship 40 GW of back contact products in 2025’
As part of our Intersolar 2024 interview series, pv magazine spoke with Dennis She, Senior VP of Global Sales and Marketing at Longi Solar, about the company’s transition to the back contact (BC) technology, the expected shipment volumes for 2024, and the strategy to address overcapacity and pricing issues. He also spoke about Longi’s plans in the hydrogen sector and said the company does not intend to enter the energy storage business.
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Trina expects consolidation, diversification of technology in challenging market conditions
At Intersolar Europe 2024, pv magazine spoke with Helena Li, executive president at Trina Solar, about fierce competition and consolidation in the PV industry. She believes the strongest manufacturers will become stronger in the months to come and says only product diversification and innovation can help companies move ahead in the current overcapacity scenario.
Jun 27, 2024
‘They are all selling below their cost prices’
In the second interview in a series held at Intersolar 2024, pv magazine spoke with Karen Tang, editorial director for Europe at US-based global energy price reporting agency OPIS, about the strong pressure on prices across all segments, including the downstream business. She defined the current market situation as “unhealthy” and “bleak” for the PV industry, although she acknowledged that overcapacity is also making solar extremely competitive compared to all other energy sources. Tang also expects pressure on electricity and gas prices to continue this year.
‘In the next year, some of these guys are going to be bankrupt’
At Intersolar in Munich, pv magazine spoke with Jenny Chase, solar analyst at BloombergNEF, about the incredibly low polysilicon prices, massive overcapacity, and increasing consolidation. According to Chase, this year there will be enough polysilicon capacity to produce 1.1 TW of solar modules, but global module demand is expected to reach around 585 GW. “That is a pretty huge delta,” she said, noting that the solar industry should also prepare for a series of “negative feedback mechanisms,” such as negative prices and excess of solar power.
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