Key takeaways:
India and the US remain the most active markets for module equipment, while China’s demand is mainly upgrade-driven
Europe faces weaker equipment demand amid oversupply and ongoing PERC-to-TOPCon transitions
Equipment suppliers are adapting strategies based on regional demand cycles and technology transitions
Participants in the TaiyangNews Solar Module Production Equipment Market Survey come from varied regions, technology backgrounds, and levels of integration. Thus, the key markets and focus areas may not essentially be the same. Below is a summary of market-related inputs, along with a brief background on the companies that, in addition to completing the survey, spoke with us in interviews.
ConfirmWare is a China-based company founded in 2005. Initially involved in research, development, and production of computer machine control systems and other industrial equipment, ConfirmWare ventured into solar in 2011. It began researching intelligent devices in the PV industry and developed its first semi-automated stringer in 2011. The company describes the current PV manufacturing environment as highly challenging, citing global overcapacity built up over the past 5 years that has put pressure on both module makers and equipment suppliers. Its major markets are India and the US. While still limited, some activity is also evident in China, largely driven by upgrades to existing production lines rather than high-volume greenfield projects, according to Le Kang, the company’s R&D director. He sees India and the US remaining the key markets in 2026, while China may see renewed demand as leading manufacturers retrofit lines to adopt new technologies.
As part of Mondragon Corporation, established in 1954 in Spain, Mondragon Assembly develops automatic turnkey solutions for PV module production. The company is also active in other industries, including e-mobility, energy storage, and automation. Mondragon installed its first PV equipment at a customer’s site in 2001 and its first tabber and stringer in 2002. It delivered its first turnkey line in 2004. Mondragon says it has served the PV module lines with its upgraded and automated equipment for the past 2 decades. Notably, it also developed its first CTS tool meant for BIPV modules, based on its MTS3000 platform.
For Mondragon, India has become a focus market, with shipments exceeding 1 GW over the past 2 years. Haitz Alzola, Mondragon's Sales Manager, noted that India’s module manufacturing ecosystem has matured rapidly and closely mirrors Chinese manufacturing models. This transition has been accelerated by Chinese overcapacity, which has, in turn, driven down equipment prices and enabled Indian manufacturers to expand quickly using largely standardized solutions.
In contrast, Alzola described Europe as a ‘cold’ market. Heavy oversupply of low-cost Chinese modules, partly due to restricted access to the North American market, has led to bankruptcies and consolidation among European module makers. This has also slowed innovation in integrated PV applications, such as BIPV, flexible, lightweight modules. The reason is straightforward: standard products have become too inexpensive to compete with. The key focus for those who are still surviving is transitioning from PERC to TOPCon.
In these prevailing tough conditions, Mondragon’s strategy is to go beyond standard module manufacturing. Counting on its 50-year legacy of serving various industries, the company positions itself as a provider of customized, turnkey solutions. In 2025, its first line for agri-PV modules was commissioned by a client in Greece. According to Alzola, participation in European R&D consortia and funding programs, and collaboration with startups and research partners to help develop new PV products and scale them from pilot to automated production, are all parts of the plan. Ultimately, the company sees PV integrated into day-to-day life and positions itself as an enabler of this transition.
Bürkle, one of the leading names in manufacturing presses and offering coating technologies, participates in this survey with one of its latest laminator models. Established in 1920, the company offers industrial surface-coating equipment, alongside industrial presses for manufacturing wood panels, doors, etc. Not just for the PV industry, Bürkle also offers laminators for making plastic cards, PCBs, and laminated and safety glass. Bürkle has been in the solar lamination business since the early 2000s. The company initially developed laminators for thin-film glass-glass modules and later adapted the process for crystalline silicon modules. It was among the market leaders in the laminators segment when PV production and related equipment were still centered in Germany. Bürkle’s laminators were used by several leading European module makers; the majority of them no longer exist. Not just in Europe, but some of the early Indian solar makers, such as Emmvee and RenewSys, also installed Bürkle’s laminators, according to Pascal Maulbetsch from the company’s technical sales service department. He said the company’s products are highly customized and typically require about 6 months of lead time, which has somewhat hindered its ability to gain market share, especially against Chinese competitors. Given its technically advanced equipment and European base, Bürkle secured all laminator orders for 3SUN’s European lighthouse HJT factory, which has a module production capacity of 3 GW.
Switzerland-based Avalon ST is a relatively new company, founded in 2018 by Marcos Barrigon, Damien Etienne, and Gavin Dong, and it develops metrology systems for the PV industry. Last year, Avalon acquired Pasan SA, another Swiss company that has been in the PV cell and module testing for over 40 years. Although Avalon ST and Pasan remain 2 separate brands due to ongoing projects and regional agent structures, the company plans to merge under a single identity in the long term, with full consolidation expected by the end of 2026, according to CEO Damien Etienne.
In fact, both companies, with different backgrounds, complement each other well. Avalon positions itself as a company rooted in LED characterization, while Pasan, which primarily focuses on xenon-based measurements, has long been well regarded in the reference-level characterization segment, particularly in laboratories worldwide. Seen in this light, the acquisition reflects a clear strategic alignment.
Avalon offers cost-effective, high-performance LED technology suitable for production environments and compact lab systems, while Pasan brings its deep metrology expertise and reputation as the industry benchmark for reference measurements. The combined portfolio now covers both ends of the characterization techniques – xenon and LED – each with its own benefits.
From a market perspective, Etienne highlighted India as a major growth region, underscoring that it has secured most Tier-1 laboratory projects in the country and is increasingly winning production contracts, even against lower-cost Chinese competitors.
The text is an edited excerpt from TaiyangNews’ latest Market Survey on Solar Module Production Equipment 2026, which can be downloaded for free here.
