Recently, Archie Flores, General Manager of LONGi Solar USA, took an exclusive interview with TaiyangNews on LONGi Solar’s high-efficiency photovoltaic product strategy.
At Shanghai SNEC 2017, LONGi Solar released the latest bifacial mono-crystalline module (Hi-MO2) with higher power, higher energy yield and lower LCOE. The front side of the product has power generation efficiency over 21.2%, which is equivalent to a single-sided PERC cell, with almost no additional cost. Taking into account the power generation of the back side, the power of a 72-cell Hi-MO2 module can reach 400W.
The leading position and technical guarantee of LONGi Solar in the upstream of the PV industry chain provides a solid foundation for downstream integration. As a global leading manufacturer of PV modules, LONGi Solar has taken the lead in raising the R&D investment ratio, built and planned considerable bifacial product capacity, and laid a good foundation for the bifacial products to occupy a mainstream position in the market.
“LONGi Solar’s 300MW bifacial cell production line in China has been put into full production, and more bifacial capacity will be added in the future.”
According to Archie Flores, technology is a key driver for lower LCOE. All this time we have been reducing the BOS costs and enhancing the gross margins by improving technology and product efficiency, but we can also enhance the gross margins by increasing the project benefits. To this end, we must shift our way of thinking from the “price per watt” to the “price per kWh”.
From the perspective of product, the bifacial power generation technology has been applicable to large power stations, and the continued cost reduction has prompted manufacturers to continue investing in high-efficiency and low-cost cell solutions. Meanwhile, as the PERC technology has gradually become the mainstream in the monocrystalline area, the benefits of bifacial power generation have been well reflected on the p-type PERC technology.
TaiyangNews predicts that the bifacial cell capacity is about 4GW in 2017, and will increase to 8GW in 2018. Obviously, the whole photovoltaic industry has urgent needs for the market-oriented application of high efficiency, high energy yield products.
With the promotion of the “Top Runner in China” bases and the mechanism for common terrestrial power stations to enter power grid through competing on prices, PV power station investors have stronger demand for lower LCOE. Only accelerated technical progress can meet their demand, boost “de-subsidizing”, and expedite the advent of a real market-oriented photovoltaic era.
As a technology leading manufacturer, LONGi Solar has always been driving the development of mass production technology with minimum risk and cost. In October 2017, LONGi Solar’s monocrystalline cell broke the efficiency record twice, and raised it to 23.26%, continuing to remain as the most cost-effective technology in the industry.
Archie Flores revealed in the interview, “Once a technology is mature for mass production, LONGi Solar will be the first to use it. What makes LONGi so special is its emphasis on R&D investment. Each year, LONGi invests 7%-8% of its revenue in technology R&D, which should be the highest in the industry.”
“Win with efficiency, provide low-cost, high-quality products” is LONGi people’s philosophy of technological innovation. LONGi has always been focusing on the development of next-generation PV technology, addressing the challenges posed by technology and product innovation, demonstrating its strong sense of responsibility as a photovoltaic industry leader.
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