- PV InfoLink says in 2020 LONGi was the company with largest solar module shipments having shipped over 20 GW
- JinkoSolar, the company on the top spot for several years, was pushed back to 2nd spot on the list
- Top 10 companies staked claim to 81.5% of global module demand in 2020 with top 5 companies growing their annual shipments in 2020 by more than 30% each
- In 2021, top 10 companies are expected to claim more than 90% of global demand
- 5 of these top 10 will speak at the TaiyangNews Advanced Module Virtual Conference on Jan 27/28. Registrations are free here
In the year 2020, LONGi shipped more than 20 GW of solar module globally replacing its compatriot JinkoSolar from the top spot on PV InfoLink’s global module shipment rankings for last year, according to PV InfoLink (see LONGi Exceeds 20 GW Module Shipments In 2020). JinkoSolar is now on the 2nd spot on PV InfoLink’s list.
Interestingly, during H1/2020 LONGi had shipped over 7 GW only as PV InfoLink’s tally for the period had JinkoSolar on top (see JinkoSolar Top Module Supplier During H1/2020).
LONGi and JinkoSolar are followed by JA Solar, Trina Solar, Canadian Solar, Hanwha Q Cells, Risen Energy, Astronergy, First Solar and Suntech in that order on the top 10 global module shipment ranking of PV InfoLink. Barring this shuffling, the ranking has remained the same as in 2019 with top 10 companies staying out on the list.
Overall, the top 10 companies claimed catered to 81.5% of global demand translating into shipping around 114.1 GW of solar modules in 2020 with top 5 companies growing their shipments significantly—more than 30% annual increase for each pointing towards the increasing dominance of large manufacturers.
Going forward, PV InfoLink analysts expect the global market share of top 10 companies to claim more than 90% of demand in 2021 going by the ambitious targets by these companies as they grow their capacity.
“Looking ahead, business of smaller manufacturers will struggle amid an increasingly competitive environment,” said analysts pointing at greater consolidation in the solar space. “Large companies will form alliance with large manufacturers to promote large size and push supply chains to become vertically integrated to have more control over their supply of raw materials.”
In November 2020, PV InfoLink forecast for 2021 had analysts expecting overcapacity of solar cell and module production capacity triggering price war as they peg global solar module demand for the year to grow to 143.7 GW (see PV InfoLink Warns Of Cell & Module Overcapacity In 2021).
Out of the top 10 solar module suppliers in 2020 on PV InfoLink’s list—Trina Solar, Risen Energy, Canadian Solar, JinkoSolar, LONGi and Astronergy—are participating in TaiyangNews virtual conference on Advanced Module Technologies for Rooftop & Utility Scale Applications to be held on January 27 & 28, 2021 online. It is also a launchpad for TaiyangNews Advanced Module Technologies Report. Registrations are free here.
