A report from the China Photovoltaic Industry Association (CPIA) showed global PV module manufacturing capacity reached 1,430.2 GW in 2025, up 3.0% year over year (YoY), while module output fell 4.4% to 693.6 GW. China produced 574.5 GW of modules, down 8.4%, with domestic manufacturing capacity declining 5.8% to 1,089.4 GW. CPIA said the industry's supply-demand balance has entered a period of deep adjustment.
The report also showed that the top 5 manufacturers increased their combined market share by 0.8 percentage points to 48.2%, while the top 10 manufacturers' share declined 2 percentage points to 64.3%.
CPIA said trade barriers are shifting from tariffs toward local manufacturing requirements and expects stronger measures to address excessive competition, including mandatory national standards to improve product quality and support industry upgrading.
CPIA recently reported that global solar cell production grew 0.5% YoY to 757 GW in 2025 (see China Solar PV News Snippets).
Integrated solar manufacturer TCL Solar (formerly TCL TZE) expects its adjusted net loss for H1 2026 to narrow to between RMB 3.6 billion and RMB 3.9 billion, an improvement of 12.9%-19.6% YoY, driven by lower production costs and an improved product mix despite continued industry oversupply and weak pricing. The company reported a more than 13% YoY reduction in non-silicon wafer costs, while revenue from cells and modules increased nearly 40%. High-efficiency products, including BC and half-cut cells, accounted for more than 15% of shipments.
The company also announced a RMB 2.6 billion investment to upgrade its existing TOPCon production lines to BC technology, converting 20 GW of cell capacity and 25 GW of module capacity. The upgrade is scheduled for completion by the end of Q1 2027, after which all of TCL Solar's cell capacity will use BC technology and around 50% of its module capacity will be BC.
TCL recently acquired a controlling stake in DAS Solar to expand its presence across the solar cell and module manufacturing segments (see TCL Zhonghuan Completes DAS Solar Deal, Bets On BC).
Polysilicon producer Lihao Clean Energy has received the Solar Stewardship Initiative (SSI) Gold certification for supply chain traceability following an audit by TÜV Rheinland. The company said it is the first high-purity polysilicon manufacturer globally to achieve this certification.
Lihao said it has established a digital traceability platform that covers the origin and destination of its polysilicon products, while implementing low-carbon manufacturing and closed-loop management of wastewater, waste gas, and solid waste to meet SSI Gold requirements.
Zhejiang Province's Department of Economy and Information Technology has released draft guidelines requiring all new industrial plants constructed during the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) to install rooftop PV across all available roof areas. Existing industrial facilities are also encouraged to maximize solar deployment, with the province targeting 10 GW of new industrial PV capacity by 2030.
The guidelines also cover parking canopies, building façades, perimeter walls, and idle paved areas within industrial parks. They encourage the use of high-efficiency PV modules and integrated source-grid-load-storage systems, while requiring grid operators to ensure timely grid connection and the full absorption of renewable energy.
