The transaction price of monodense material ranged from RMB 33,000 to 36,000/ton, averaging RMB 34,300/ton. The transaction price of N-type granular silicon ranged from RMB 36,000 to 37,000/ton, averaging RMB 36,700/ton, an increase of 0.55% month-on-month.
The Silicon Industry Branch said that five companies signed contracts for n-type silicon rods and two signed contracts for p-type silicon rods this week. The top companies had less difficulty in signing contracts, and prices had already recovered from their low point. Through trading with futures and spot traders, a few companies were able to achieve a slight price increase. The price of granular silicon also rose to a certain extent.
The silicon industry department stated that there are two reasons for the price increase. On the one hand, due to the suspension and maintenance of upstream production for several consecutive months, silicon production in July fell to 138,000 tons, a decrease of 14.53% month-on-month. The same level of production is expected for August and July.
On the other hand, silicon prices were stable for many weeks before the adjustment. Some downstream companies believe that the bottom of this cycle has been reached, which is encouraging companies to buy and stock up at extremely low prices. The combined effects of production reduction and inventory holding have led to a rise in silicon quotations. There has been a larger price increase for small orders and rush orders, while the actual transaction prices for large orders and long-term orders have remained largely stable and no significant large-scale price increase has been observed so far.
However, with industry stocks still at a high level of around 300,000 tonnes, supply and demand have not fundamentally changed, so it is unlikely that the price increase this time will be permanent.
Wafer, cell, module production and price
As for wafers, according to Silicon Industry Branch statistics, wafer production last July was expected to be 50.6 GW, down 1.8% from the previous month.
The Silicon Industry Branch said wafer production is expected to increase to 51-52 GW in August, according to plans from various companies, with reduced inventory pressure leading to a possible recovery.
It is noteworthy that the production of silicon wafers is still enormous: according to statistical data, domestic wafer production from January to July totaled 416.15 GW, an increase of 37.2% year-on-year.
Domestic cell production was 49GW in July, down 5.8% month-on-month. Domestic module production was 49GW in July, down 4% month-on-month. Among them, the price of M10 mono TOPCon cells fell to 0.285 RMB/W, down 5%. The price drop put greater operating pressure on cell segments, forcing some third-tier cell factories to close.
Silicon Industry Branch also pointed out that the current price of 182mm TOPCon bifacial glass-glass modules has fallen to 0.76 RMB/W, which is below the cash cost. As the upstream price has currently bottomed out, with the peak season in the second half of the year, market demand is expected to increase month by month. The price of PV modules is expected to remain stable. However, low-price bids and inefficient products are expected to continue to disrupt the market.
