China Photovoltaic Industry Association

Solar and storage industry leaders from China and Europe gathered in Germany this week to advance cross-border partnerships, launch a bilateral storage collaboration platform, and coordinate strategies for scaling PV and battery deployment amid surging demand, grid pressures, and intensifying market competition.

China’s PV sector faced steep declines in upstream output and margins in the first half of 2025, as oversupply and price declines weighed on manufacturers, according to the China Photovoltaic Industry Association (CPIA).

SinoLink Securities says aluminum frames now dominate solar panel costs, as material price shifts reshape the cost structure of the PV industry and drive the need for innovation.

In five key trends, pv magazine looks back over a year that saw PV module prices fall lower than many thought possible, while demand was restrained by grid congestion, among other challenges. Energy storage has had a strong year and geopolitics is seeing solar and battery manufacturing enter new regions as competition drives technical innovation.

The Chinese PV industry has benefited from the availability of substantial finance over the past two decades, supporting the development of the renewable, zero-carbon capability essential for meeting the goals of the Paris climate agreement. Easy access to finance has led to unsustainably low prices and unnecessary losses, however, impacting China’s ability to sustain support for renewable energy systems. As the nation expands clean power installations and enhances grid-balancing capacity, maintaining consistent financial support has become more challenging.

From zero to hero in 20 years, China’s PV industry has undergone an extraordinary journey. Vincent Shaw considers the reasons for the nation’s solar success and the challenges ahead.

PV deployment is gathering pace in the EU member state but grid capacity shortfalls and unpredictable shifts in government policy need to be addressed if the nation is to harness its full solar – and European energy security – potential.

With polysilicon production capacity having been rapidly rolled out after last year’s shortages, China analyst Frank Haugwitz has suggested global manufacturing capability for the ethylene vinyl acetate used on PV panels could struggle to keep pace with what is expected to be another record year of demand for solar.

The China Photovoltaic Industry Association (CPIA) has criticized the adoption of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act by the United Stats Congress, which bars all imports from China’s Xinjiang region, and urged the country to stop spreading harmful rumors.

A booming overseas market has offset falls in demand in China caused by rising solar module prices, according to Flat Glass. In common with its PV glassmaking rivals, the company is pressing ahead with production expansion, betting reduced prices for its products will feed even greater demand.