Top 5 Solar Cell Manufacturers, All Chinese, Shipped 78 GW In H1 2024

During the 1st half of 2024, the top 5 solar cell manufacturers shipped a combined 77.96 GW capacity, according to InfoLink Consulting that says this represents an annual decline of over 7%, thanks primarily to oversupply leading to price collapse. This situation also impacted the listing plans of some companies.  

The top spot is taken over by SolarSpace that’s significantly developing its overseas presence, especially in the US market for which it is among the 1st in its peers to set up a factory in Laos to reduce the risk of trade tariffs. 

TOPCon solar technology company Jietai Solar (JTPV) is next on the list as it saw an increase in orders from international markets. 

Tongwei Solar saw its external solar cell shipments decline during H1 2024 as the company used up 60% to 70% capacity for its own module production that currently stands at 75 GW. It is also converting its PERC lines to TOPCon. During TaiyangNews Global PV System Technology Trends H1/2024 conference, Tongwei’s Aran shared that the company targets to expand its annual solar cell production capacity to within 130 GW to 150 GW, up from 95 GW at present (see Day 1 Summary TaiyangNews Global PV System Technology Trends H1 2024 Conference). 

Back contact (BC) cell technology specialist AIKO is tied on 4th spot on the list along with Yingfa Group. AIKO is also producing TOPCon products since H1 2024 as its PERC lines transition. Yingfa makes its debut on the InfoLink list during the period as its TOPCon cell shipments ranked among top 3 in the world. 

Runergy, a regular name in InfoLink’s top 5 list since 2019, lost out to its competitors due to turbulence in the industry and market fluctuations, according to the analysts. 

Trend spotting 

Among notable trends as observed by the analysts, TOPCon has surpassed PERC cells in terms of cumulative shipments reported with around 40.6 GW sent out of factories between January to June 2024, accounting for 52% of the total shipments reported. The share of PERC cells, on the other hand, totaled close to 37.3 GW. 

In terms of size, M10 with 182-182.2 x 182 mm - 199 mm size dominated shipments from the top 5 players, irrespective of the n-type or p-type distinction. 

The cumulative shipments of the top 5 M10 sizes reached 61 GW, out of which 182-182.2 mm size shipped approximately 37.5 GW (61%), and the 183.75 mm rectangular size shipped approximately 23.6 GW (39%). 

In the G12 space, 210 x 210 mm size accounted for about 13.3 GW or 17% of total shipments. Currently, the buzzword G12R size of 182 x 210 mm size accounted for only 4% or 3.2 GW of the shipments. The M6 and sizes lower than this at less than 1% are on their way out. 

Analysts attribute the slow-down in the uptake of G12R to sluggish market conditions and lack of significant impact on terminal demand. Manufacturers are more inclined to adopt micro-rectangular sizes.  

“Statistics show that in the TOPCon battery sector, micro-rectangular with a long side of 183.75mm became the mainstream specification for shipments in the first half of the year, accounting for nearly 56%,” explain InfoLink analysts. “In the PERC battery sector, due to cost-effective upgrades and overseas shipment considerations, 182-182.2mm square cells were still the mainstay in the first half of the year, accounting for 71%.”    

Strategical moves 

With stiff competition in the market, some cell makers are venturing into module production to reduce the proportion of external sales, for instance, Tongwei. InfoLink believes the current vertically integrated cell production capacity is sufficient to meet market demand while the remaining external procurement demand will face fierce competition.   

Barring Tongwei and AIKO, the rest of the companies on InfoLink’s list plan to produce overseas. SolarSpace has opted for Laos, while JTPV and Yingfa have zeroed in on Oman and Indonesia for their projects.   

Looking forward, analysts believe continued technological development will be a defining feature for solar PV manufacturers to gain market share and respond flexibly to uncertain market conditions. However, they admit that looking at the current challenges, cell makers are caught between choosing survival over development.