As a global leader in the PV industry, China should cooperate with the international community to jointly initiate and formulate relevant regulations to provide strong support for China's PV export to the world.

Facing the energy crisis caused by geopolitics and extreme weather, the European Commission has recently made a series of plans to build a large number of buildings in the photovoltaic sector. On October 11, the European Commission announced on its website that it has formally approved the formation of a new solar photovoltaic industry alliance to accelerate the deployment of solar power facilities across the EU. The EU's "ambitious" photovoltaic layout is at risk of being put on hold because of rising energy prices and increased manufacturing costs, according to new research. On the one hand, the high demand for PV in the EU, on the other hand, the rising local manufacturing costs, make the advantages of China's PV industry with scale and low cost highlighted again, which also provides a platform for the further development of Chinese PV enterprises in Europe.

On October 10, European Commission President von der Leyen publicly said at the EU Digital Summit that the EU will accelerate the transition to renewable and clean energy in order to wean itself from Russian energy dependence as soon as possible. The EU is said to have drawn up two detailed plans. According to Reuters, a draft of the European Union's upcoming "energy systems digitization plan" calls for solar panels to be installed on the roofs of all commercial and public buildings in the bloc by 2027; Solar panels will also be installed on all new residential buildings in the European Union by 2029. In May 2022, the EU released an energy plan called "REPowerEU", which also mentioned the layout of photovoltaic facilities in the EU. The plan calls for cumulative photovoltaic installations in the EU as a whole to reach 320 gigawatts by 2025 and 600 gigawatts by 2030. Thus, the importance of solar power generation is self-evident in the pursuit of "energy freedom" in the EU.

"Europe is in the throes of an energy crisis," said Wang Yuanfeng, director of the Center for Carbon Neutral Technology and Strategy at Beijing Jiaotong University. "Solar power plays an obvious role in complementing local energy. In the long term, the start of large-scale deployment of solar power now will also accelerate the transition to renewables in Europe."

But there is no escaping the cost pressures facing the European PV industry. Research by Rystad Energy, an energy consultancy, found that about 35 gigawatts of photovoltaic manufacturing projects in Europe are at risk of being put on hold as the local industry's manufacturing costs have risen sharply due to higher electricity prices. Rystad Energy also said that energy-intensive companies in the local PV industry chain have temporarily shut down production lines due to rising operating costs, which also leads to the risk of failure in the financing of related projects.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong's South China Morning Post reported on Oct. 5 that Chinese solar equipment exports to Europe are "booming." It is reported that China is currently the largest exporter of PV modules, and Europe is also the largest export market for China's PV modules.

According to the data of China Photovoltaic Industry Association, in the first half of 2022, the total volume of photovoltaic modules exported by China reached 78.6 gigawatts, and the export volume of modules reached 22.02 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 116.1%, among which the export volume to Europe reached more than half. "The advantages of China's PV industry are becoming more prominent. Compared with Europe, China is more competitive in terms of technology, industrial scale and manufacturing costs. Most importantly, the Chinese PV industry has rich production and practical experience, which will help Chinese companies better enter the European PV market." "Wang Yuanfeng said.

He also argues that Chinese companies need to be vigilant in the face of blue ocean markets. First, on the trade front, Chinese companies need to be prepared for possible "anti-monopoly" actions to avoid a passive situation. Secondly, on the geopolitical level, there have been voices saying that Europe should not become dependent on Chinese photovoltaic, otherwise it will be like the situation of relying on Russian energy. So Chinese PV companies also need to be prepared for geopolitical impacts. In terms of technology, China also needs to avoid being intimidated by Europe and the United States. Most importantly, China's PV industry needs to reduce carbon emissions across the entire industry chain to avoid being swept up in Europe's potential carbon footprint regulations. As a global leader in the PV industry, China should cooperate with the international community to jointly initiate and formulate relevant regulations to provide strong support for China's PV export to the world. Editor/Xu Shengpeng