L R AS Published on Saturday 18 September 2021 - n° 374 - Categories:trade war

The main province outside Xinjiang where silicon is manufactured is reducing its production

The Yunnan provincial government is beginning to implement the control of silicon metal production, ensuring that the average monthly production of silicon metal manufacturers from September to December does not exceed

10% of August production. This means a 90% reduction in silicon metal production.

Yunnan, a province in southwest China, produces 20% of total silicon metal output, second only to Xinjiang, which accounts for 40%. The double-checking policy will reduce silicon metal production by more than 200,000 MT over the period from September to December in Yunnan.

While China has a lot of spare capacity for silicon metal, silicon metal prices have recently risen due to power shortages in the southwest of the country. The reduction in production in Yunnan will reduce the possibility of US imports of solar products, as the US wants to source materials from areas outside Xinjiang.

https://www.infolink-group.com/en/solar/analysis-trends/Silicon-metal-shortage-to-intensify-as-Yunnan-cut-production

PV InfoLink of 17 September 2021

Editor's note: The imposition of a US embargo on the import of silicon (and silicon products) from Xinjiang has deprived the US of 40% of the silicon produced in China (and almost as much worldwide). With this production control measure, the Chinese government is taking 20% of silicon production off the market, at a time when the silicon shortage is not over. New production units to be commissioned will also be subject to these restrictions. It is therefore to be expected that the shortage will become more acute in the fourth quarter and into 2022.

China's dominance, or rather hegemony, in the photovoltaic sector will make users pay a high price. We are no longer in a market logic, but in an organisation designed to dominate the world and make it pay for the humiliation that China suffered in the 19th century

Without noise and without Chinese-style crows, China will show that it can be counted on. The transfer of wealth will increase between the G20 countries and China. The geostrategic balance is shifting in favour of Asia. This is a first example. Many others will follow

In a way, a new world is beginning for photovoltaics

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