Why do photovoltaic giants bet billions on ABC battery technology? Bottom signal?

    At present, as the prices of various links in the photovoltaic industry chain stabilize, the giants have announced a subtle

expansion of production. In the industry's view, the current trend of the photovoltaic sector has already reflected pessimistic

expectations in advance. In the future, with the acceleration of industry reshuffle, the concentration of the industry is expected

to significantly increase.

　　    Photovoltaic giant Aixu has chosen to bet heavily on ABC battery technology, mainly to seize the high ground of advanced productivity in the photovoltaic industry, strengthen the company's technological and product advantages, and reserve space for future development.

    Nearly 10 billion is not a small amount

    According to the announcement of Aixu Corporation on February 25th, the board of directors of the company has approved

the proposal on investing in the construction of the Jinan Phase I high-efficiency crystalline silicon solar cell and module project

with an annual output of 10GW.

    It is reported that the construction period of the project is about 15 months, with plans to start construction in the first

quarter of 2024 and expected to be put into operation in the first half of 2025. After the project is fully operational, Aixu

Corporation will add 10GW of N-type ABC high-efficiency solar cells and 10GW of module production capacity.

    The total investment amount of the project is expected to reach 9.778 billion yuan, including 7.498 billion yuan of fixed assets

investment and 2.48 billion yuan of initial and operating working capital.

    In fact, for Aixu Holdings, a loyal "fan" of BC batteries, nearly 10 billion yuan in investment is not a small amount. This amount

is almost close to the net asset value of Aixu Co., Ltd. as of the end of the third quarter of 2023 (10.018 billion yuan).

Moreover, as of the end of the third quarter of 2023, Aixu Holdings had a cash balance of 4.882 billion yuan, which is significantly

different from the total investment amount of this project.

    Aixu Corporation also stated that the company will raise funds through various means such as daily operating self owned

funds (including bills), government subsidies, and financing from financial institutions. According to calculations, the company

expects daily operating self owned funds to account for about 25% -35% of its funding sources, financial institution loans to

account for about 40% -45%, and government subsidies to account for about 25% -30%.

    Aixu Corporation also stated that there is a certain degree of uncertainty in whether sufficient funds for project construction

can be raised in a timely manner in the future. As of the end of September 2023, its asset liability ratio was 69.8%. Investing

heavily in this project may lead to an increase in the company's asset liability ratio and financial expenses, thereby increasing

the risk of debt repayment.

    Longi and Aixu bet on the BC route

    It is not difficult to see that Aixu Corporation's investment in building new ABC battery and component production capacity

can be described as a desperate gamble. However, this move is not difficult to understand. In the BC battery technology route,

Aixu Corporation has already "bet" on it.

    In addition to Aixu Co., Ltd., Longi Co., Ltd. is also a domestic manufacturer with BC battery molding capacity. As early as

September last year, Longi Green Energy Chairman Zhong Baoshen's statement caused a market uproar: "In the next 5-6 years,

BC batteries will be the absolute mainstream of crystalline silicon batteries This statement has also sparked debates among

many photovoltaic giants about the industry's technological roadmap.

    The basic type of BC battery is IBC battery (i.e. cross finger back contact battery), which is a pure single-sided battery. Unlike

TOPCON and HJT cells, IBC's PN junction and metal contacts are located on the back of the solar cell, with no metal gate lines

blocking the front, eliminating the front metal electrode structure.

    Therefore, BC batteries can maximize the utilization of incident light, bring more effective power generation area, thereby

improving the energy conversion efficiency of the battery, and have a beautiful appearance. Importantly, as a platform

technology, BC can be combined with P-type, HJT, TOPCON and other technologies to form various technical routes such as

HPBC, HBC (compatible with some HJT processes), TBC (compatible with some TOPCON processes).

    It is worth noting that in recent times, the overall market price of the photovoltaic industry chain has stabilized, and there are

signs of a rebound in the market, with prices expected to emerge from low levels. Fangzheng Securities predicts that the

module production in March is expected to achieve significant growth, with favorable market demand both domestically and

internationally, and a generally positive outlook for the photovoltaic market.

    Giants are continuously expanding their production against the trend, or revealing some subtle signals. It should be noted

that the production time of the above-mentioned multiple projects is locked in 2025. In the industry's view, the current trend

of the photovoltaic sector has already reflected pessimistic expectations in advance. With the acceleration of industry reshuffle

in the future, the concentration of the industry will significantly increase.

　　Zhongbu Qingtian New Energy is a high-tech enterprise specializing in the research and development of photovoltaic module automation production line equipment. Through long-term market research and customer feedback, the company has developed six advanced and highly compatible equipment, including BC high-speed serial welding machine, BC low-speed serial welding machine, BC high-speed non-destructive cutting machine, BC low-speed non-destructive cutting machine, cutting and welding integrated machine, and laser frame marking machine, to meet the diverse needs of the market. The product is independently developed and designed, providing customers with one-on-one differentiated customization to help enterprises achieve production capacity improvement.