Many governments are investing in renewable energy sources like solar, but which country controls the manufacture of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels?

As it turns out, China owns the vast majority of the global solar panel supply chain, controlling at least 75% of every critical stage of solar photovoltaic panel manufacturing and processing.

From polysilicon production to soldering finished solar cells and modules to panels, China has the largest share at every stage of solar panel manufacturing.

Even as early as 2010, China manufactured most of the world’s solar panels, but its average share of the solar panel supply chain has risen from 55% to 84% over the past 12 years.

China also continues to lead the way in investment, accounting for nearly two-thirds of global large-scale solar investment. In the first half of 2022, the state invested 41 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 173%.

After China, the next major country for solar panel manufacturing is India, which accounts for nearly 3% of solar panel manufacturing and 1% of battery manufacturing. To help achieve the country’s target of 280 gigawatts (GW) of installed solar capacity by 2030 (currently 57.9 GW), the Indian government is adding additional production-linked incentives in 2022 to its production-linked incentive scheme to support domestic solar photovoltaic panel manufacturing. Allocate $2.6 billion.

Besides China and India, Asia Pacific also accounts for a large share of solar panel manufacturing, especially modules and cells, with 15.4% and 12.4%, respectively.

Although While Europe and North America account for more than one-third of global solar panel demand, they average less than 3% each across all stages of actual solar panel manufacturing.

I hope people don’t think solar panels are of poor quality just because they are made in China. Many major Tier 1 manufacturers have established strong manufacturing facilities in China for cost reasons, but have a proven track record of producing reliable products for over a decade.

Most Chinese solar panel manufacturers direct their products to the mass market. That is, they design cost-effective products that are somewhere in the middle in terms of quality and the latest technology, so they can hit a good price point. There are some premium solar panel producers like LG, REC, Sunpower, most of their production is located outside of China, and they focus on high-end quality and high prices.

Where can I source solar photovoltaic panels?

If you’re looking for the best quality solar panels and are willing to pay extra to get them, in most cases I recommend sourcing from China, where manufacturers focus on delivering the best quality. If you’ve sourced from Germany, the US, or Southeast Asian countries before, you’ll find that no matter where they’re assembled, many of these companies still source many components for solar panels from downstream Chinese suppliers. As such, you’ll almost inevitably find solar products that don’t have certain components made in China. So, if you source directly from China, a Chinese supplier will match you with all the PV product ranges you need, reducing costs and guaranteeing quality.