Market Watch

PV CellTech has become the upstream PV industry’s foremost annual event. This year, a key topic for discussion was whether n-type silicon would trump p-type as manufacturers look to drive up efficiencies, as well as the inevitable debate over the relative fortunes of multi and mono technologies. Tom Kenning reports from the event.

The in-house market research team at PV Tech, this journal’s sister website, has developed a new model for forecasting trends in polysilicon consumption by the solar industry. This article analyzes how, based on this new model, the industry’s use of polysilicon will dip below 4 grams per watt by the end of this year.

Following an extensive research process, we can now reveal the top 10 module suppliers (by shipment volumes) for the calendar year 2017. The final listing – and the underlying numbers – confirms the trends of recent years and the continued dominance of our self-penned ‘Silicon Module Super League’ (SMSL) group.

Ben Willis looks at the latest trends from some of the world’s most promising emerging PV markets. This issue features Oman, Saudi Arabia, Kazakhstan and South Korea

After the frenzied highs of several year ago, Japan’s PV market has quietened down somewhat. But As Izumi Kaizuka writes, ongoing policy and market reforms and the evolution of new technologies look set to ensure strong continued growth for the foreseeable future

In 2017 China’s domestic PV market surpassed 50GW. Meishi Tan asks whether such astonishing levels of deployment can be sustained and, if so, what the future drivers of growth will be

Having all manufacturing stages – from raw materials to finished modules – located under one roof in the same factory offers the scope to optimize module quality and reliability.

Combined R&D expenditures of 12 major PV module manufacturers in 2016, tracked since 2007, decline by approximately 4.4% in 2016 to US$519.3 million, compared to US$542.9 million in 2015. As 2015 expenditures were a new record high, 2016 becomes the second highest year of spending and 2014 the third highest. All three years highlight total combined annual R&D expenditures above US$500 million.

Trade dispute | Battle lines have been drawn as another trade dispute convulses the US solar industry. John Parnell reports on an increasingly bitter war of words as the case hearings get underway.

Quality | The speed of solar deployment in India has raised concerns that quality maybe sacrificed for expediency. As Tom Kenning reports, although there are warning signs of a potential quality problem, efforts are underway to nip it in the bud.