The large turbulences in the solar market have caused abnormal conditions in the industry.The contract price of polysilicon has reached an all-time low,nearly as low as the spot prices.Solar equipment firms have been forced to engage in price competition against their own-brand products from the second-hand market,as solar firms are selling equipment to obtain cash.In addition,new equipment has been lacking attention and orders.
Solar material suppliers have been trying to figure out a way to reduce inventories.Nevertheless,some downstream solar firms have been selling its materials to"lighten the load"and obtain cash.These materials are often priced lower than the spot price in order for the firms to obtain cash fast.
The sudden demand freeze has been causing equipment firms to sell equipment with special discounts.Although some equipment firms have been asking clients to oblige to contracts,selling at discount rates have been common.However,many downstream solar firms are eager to sell equipment to obtain cash to ease their financial problems.
This has been causing prices of equipment from the same brand to differ drastically.Sometimes brands are actually competing with their own products in the same market.But equipment demand has been low.Some solar firms that still enjoy increasing orders and high capacity utilization rates are still conservative about capacity expansions.They would rather issue OEM orders to peers if orders exceed capacities.
Solar equipment providers have been aggressive in inventing new processes and products for a market that is constantly looking for higher efficiency cells.Nevertheless,customers continue to suffer losses and have been reluctant to expand capacity or acquire new equipment.With orders shrinking,equipment firms may have to wait longer for investments on new technologies to return.
