Chinese solar manufacturers reportedly met to discuss minimum prices for polysilicon, BC modules, and TOPCon modules on October 11, 2026
The reported measures include capacity restrictions, production adjustments, and oversight to curb excessive competition and address overcapacity
The companies reportedly agreed to encourage reporting of predatory pricing
China’s leading solar PV manufacturers have reportedly agreed on minimum price levels for polysilicon and solar modules as the industry steps up efforts to curb excessive competition and improve market conditions amid squeezing margins.
According to local media outlet Taiwa Energy, representatives from major Chinese solar companies, including Tongwei and GCL, assembled for a meeting in Hangzhou on October 11, 2026. This followed their previous discussions held in Shanghai and Chengdu.
At the Hangzhou meeting, Chinese solar companies reportedly established price floors for polysilicon and modules. The industry has apparently agreed that the average price of polysilicon, including material produced through the Siemens process and granular silicon, must not fall below RMB 43,000 ($6,000) per ton, including tax. Prices below this level would be considered dumping, the report said.
For solar modules, the reported minimum prices agreed upon are RMB 0.86/W for back-contact (BC) modules and RMB 0.79/W for tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) modules. The meeting also reportedly called for the same price floors to apply to exports, procurement transactions, and bidding processes.
The reported measures follow a series of meetings aimed at addressing persistent oversupply and price competition across China's solar manufacturing industry. Taiwa reported that while the Shanghai meeting focused on establishing an overall strategy to tackle what Chinese policymakers describe as involution, referring to excessive competition that can drive prices down and undermine profitability, the Chengdu meeting focused on production cuts and industry self-discipline.
The October 11 meeting in Hangzhou sought to advance implementation through capacity restrictions, which will accelerate the phase-out of low-efficiency, high-cost production capacity. This will rebuild 'price order', leaving limited room for further significant price declines.
In August 2026, eight leading Chinese polysilicon manufacturers reportedly signed a binding industry self-regulation or Anti-Involution Initiative to address excessive price competition, including Tongwei and GCL (see Eight Chinese Polysilicon Makers Agree To Fair Pricing).
At the Hangzhou meeting, the companies reportedly also agreed to report unfair pricing practices that violate national regulations on predatory pricing or disturb industry order. They also recommended that authorities investigate state-owned enterprises that disrupt the market through low-price purchases.
It is not yet known whether the reported agreements have been formally adopted by a government authority or whether the proposed price floors are legally binding.
The reported agreements mark a further step in China's efforts to address overcapacity and restore profitability across its solar manufacturing supply chain. Polysilicon producers have faced sustained pricing pressure amid excess supply, while intense competition among module manufacturers has also weighed on margins.
It remains to be seen whether the government gets on board with this industry-level agreement since the country’s antitrust regulator, State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR), had previously stepped in to prevent consolidation and monopoly in the market following the polysilicon manufacturer forming a joint venture to tackle oversupply and competitive pricing (see China Warns Polysilicon Firms Over Monopoly Risks).
