Experts optimistic about win-win solar cooperation between China, Europe and Xinhua

“Europe is committed to achieving the goal of energy transformation, and related Chinese companies, with their knowledge and experience, could provide Europe with high-quality solar solutions and help boost the development of renewable energy through international cooperation and joint efforts.”

authors: Xinhua writers Che Yunlong, Huang Yan

MUNICH, Germany, June 23 (Xinhua) — Cooperation between the Chinese and European photovoltaic industries is a win-win situation, experts and business representatives from the photovoltaic (PV) industry said at the just concluded Intersolar Europe exhibition, the industry’s largest and most influential event photovoltaic in Europe.

The exhibition, which took place in parallel with three other trade fairs from Wednesday to Friday in Munich, focused on the energy transition.

About 3,000 exhibitors presented their latest products and solutions in areas such as photovoltaic modules, energy storage systems and charging infrastructure. The event attracted approximately 111,000 industry guests from around the world.

Markus Elsaesser, founder and CEO of exhibition organizer German Solar Promotion GmbH, noted that 976 Chinese exhibitors took part in this year’s event, making China the largest participant for the first time since the show’s inception, followed by Germany with 934 exhibitors.

INNOVATIVE GREEN AMPLIFIER

In addition to inverters and energy storage systems, solar panels constitute the main part of photovoltaic products and consist of numerous units of solar cells, the main element that converts light energy into electricity.

At the exhibition, China’s LONGI Green Energy Technology Co., Ltd. (LONGI) announced that it broke the record by raising the photoelectric conversion efficiency of its commercial silicon-perovskite tandem solar cells to 30.1 percent and is expected to have the technical ability for mass production in the next few years.

LONGI’s technical breakthrough epitomizes China’s innovative progress in the photovoltaic industry.

Elsaesser said that every year he saw many innovations at the exhibition that contributed to the decarbonization of industry and society in Europe and the world. “And this was largely due to Chinese producers because their global market share is very high,” he added.

According to the latest report on global market prospects in the photovoltaic industry published by SolarPower Europe, the association of the European photovoltaic sector, Germany installed 15 GW of new photovoltaic capacity in 2023, an increase of over 100 percent year-on-year and ranking fourth in terms of newly added power in the world.

European countries, including Spain, Italy and the Netherlands, also saw growth and were among the top 10 solar markets in 2023. As of last year, 14 of the 31 countries with a total installed solar capacity of more than 1 GW are in the European Union.

Given the unprecedented scale of growth in the solar industry, “it is important to emphasize that most of this global market expansion has been driven by and in China,” the report said. “Without China’s significant investments in solar energy, the development of the solar energy sector would be much more modest,” he added.

At the stand of the Chinese company JA Solar Technology Co., Ltd. (JA Solar), solar panels of various powers and sizes attracted visitors and business partners. According to stand staff, the company’s photovoltaic products were used in most European countries, covering a wide range of applications from private homes to large factories and supermarkets.

Zhu Daocheng, vice president of JA Solar, told Xinhua that given the overall global energy transformation agenda, China’s solar industry will play an increasingly important role in the European renewable energy market.

“I am confident that together with other Chinese companies we can continue to do well in the European solar market,” he said.

COOPERATION Where both sides win

Elsaesser sees cooperation between the Chinese and European solar industries as a win-win situation.

Noting that China has built a large-scale complete value chain in its solar industry, from raw materials to final products, he said the country has helped Europe and even the world obtain the competitive products they need to achieve green transition goals.

Chinese companies can also deepen their operations in Europe through further cooperation, such as local production. “That’s why I think it’s good to cooperate and not create any barriers between countries and regions,” Elsaesser added.

According to Qu Shuaiyuan, CEO of China-based Beny New Energy GmbH, many European countries such as Germany, France and Spain are blessed with plenty of sunshine and have huge requirements and potential for solar energy, considering the large number of homes single-family homes in these countries. The company has expanded its market in Europe by deepening cooperation with business partners in these countries to provide photovoltaic systems and solutions for balconies and roofs of local homes.

According to reports published this week by the German Solar Energy Association, more than 60 percent of private home owners in Germany have shown interest in investing in a solar energy system. The association noted that the photovoltaic industry in Germany is experiencing a particular economic boom in the area of ​​solar energy in residential buildings, as well as “a small energy revolution on home balconies.”

“Although this type of distributed solar device can generate limited power in one family, the cumulative number of countless families in Europe is significant,” Qu said.

The German company Axitec Energy is a leading supplier of photovoltaic modules in Europe. It has been cooperating with Chinese manufacturers for years, producing PV products in China and serving the European continent.

Cristina Lovato, marketing manager at Axitec Energy, said that with its value chain advantages, China’s solar industry has helped promote the green transformation in Europe.

Dennis She, vice president of LONGI, told Xinhua during the exhibition that he is optimistic that Chinese companies will continue to participate and contribute to the European renewable energy market through cooperation.

“Europe is committed to achieving the goal of energy transformation, and related Chinese companies, with their knowledge and experience, could provide Europe with high-quality solar solutions and help boost the development of renewable energy through international cooperation and joint efforts,” she said.

(Xinhua reporter Li Hanlin also contributed to this story.)■