Polysilicon price has fallen 58% since February, points out Greener

O price of polysilicon No. international market suffered a 58% reduction our last four months, according to data recorded by the new “Greener Insights”, released this Wednesday (14).

According to research and consultancy company, drop in value of the main raw material used to manufacture solar panels began to occur after the end of Chinese new year – which, with a high demand for silicon, reached levels of US$30,80/kg in mid-February.

However, what was noticed from the third week of February onwards was a drop in input values, which culminated in a cost close to US$ 12,62/kg in the first week of June.

The most significant price drop occurred between the months of May and June, as illustrated in the graph below. 

“This drop in prices throughout the year was predicted by experts at the beginning of 2023. The prediction was confirmed with the excess supply of polycrystalline silicon resulting from the increase in production capacity in China and the consequent high level of stock”, highlighted the Greener. 

According to the company, the silicon value is currently responsible for around 60% of the cost of a photovoltaic module – which, in turn, represent around 38% to 50% of the final price of a solar energy system.

“Thus, the drop in the value of this input could be significant for a reduction in the price of these systems in the medium term.” 

Second semester

With the Greener study, the trend for the second semester is one continued fall in prices do polysilicon. 

The company, however, he pointed out that the vision of those who work directly with sales in the sector is essential to obtain more concrete information and, therefore, will carry out a new study to obtain more precise information.

Also according to the consultancy company, the value of ship freight who do Asian routes too is falling in the international market, returning to pre-pandemic levels.

“All these factors combined, in addition to the possibility of inventory from equipment distributors, can reduce the final price of photovoltaic kits and help a possible recovery of the market.”