A manufacturing bridge between Europe and Asia – pv magazine International

From pv journal World 05/23

Turkey’s photo voltaic business insiders say the nation has greater than 60 module producers. Murat Guven, founder and CEO of Kaangokay, an unbiased PV manufacturing consultancy, listed 72 corporations which can be energetic or certified for “funding incentives” however “might cancel it or delay … funding.”

The image provides an awesome distinction to a photo voltaic business that counts just a few, largely small, operators between 2018 and 2020.

“We now have superb laws now,” mentioned Tolga Murat Özdemir, vice-president of GENSED (Güneş Enerjisi Sanayicileri ve Endüstrisi Derneği, the photo voltaic business affiliation of Turkey) and CEO of Kontek, an engineering enterprise, procuring, and development providers primarily based in Izmir. Citing internet metering guidelines that drive demand, Özdemir added: “For 10 years we now have suffered however we’re working arduous to have good guidelines [for solar] within the place.”

The regulation in query makes for a gorgeous financial surroundings for industrial and industrial (C&I) photo voltaic, specifically, and fertile floor for home producers. Chinese language modules are banned in Turkey, below strict anti-dumping guidelines, and C&I arrays with home modules appeal to tax incentives of 30% or 40%. An additional protectionist measure has seen imported, non-Chinese language modules appeal to tariffs – curiously primarily based on panel weight – of as much as $95 per panel.

Because of this, the usual Turkish mono-PERC (passivated emitter rear contact) modules can price $ 0.40 per watt technology capability as much as $ 0.43 / W, in comparison with $ 0.22 / W to $ 0.25 / W in China and the remainder of Europe.

Sturdy demand

Nevertheless, the Turkish market is creating, if not booming. Whereas the federal government’s set up numbers require some deciphering, GENSED chief Özdemir says that about 2.5 GW of photo voltaic will probably be put in in 2022. “It is going to be lower than 3 GW subsequent 12 months ,” he added.

Some are much less optimistic and put the 2022 determine at 1.5 GW however it’s clear that Turkey’s industrial base is popping to photo voltaic to scale back electrical energy payments. The nation stays depending on power imports and main industrial customers are searching for to scale back exports. The 30% to 40% tax incentive obtainable when utilizing home modules and the online metering tariff construction make C&I photo voltaic engaging. The flexibility to “wheel” off-site PV arrays by means of the grid and to make use of internet metering, is an extra kicker for corporations with much less solar-suitable roofs or in larger price areas.

Enter a number of producers

Turkey’s photo voltaic manufacturing sector has responded to robust C&I situations, excessive costs, and native manufacturing tax incentives. PV module manufacturing and, to a lesser extent, cell manufacturing, are thriving in Anatolia.

That manufacturing growth was on full show on the Solarex commerce present in Istanbul in April. There’s a dazzling array of exhibition cubicles from new Turkish module makers. With panel costs comparatively excessive, and incentives in place, main Turkish industrial corporations are constructing module manufacturing traces to produce their very own C&I tasks.

“We now have seen a noticeable enchancment within the manufacturing facet,” mentioned Kaangokay founder and CEO Guven. “The principle purpose for that is that panel costs, artificially, stay very excessive in Turkey, particularly on the finish of 2021 and all through 2022. Some textile producers in Turkey, who know -an the prices of promoting and international market and extra involved concerning the border. carbon changes, determined to change into panel producers themselves slightly than paying this excessive revenue margin to the producers.”

Proof of excessive margins is in a few of the Turkish producer’s disclosures. Antalya-based CW Enerji has been producing photo voltaic modules since 2010 and proudly claims to be the nation’s “408th-largest firm” primarily based on gross sales – tracked by the Istanbul Chamber of Trade and Commerce.

Together with module manufacturing, CW Enerji is concerned in the whole PV challenge improvement provide chain, from funding to operation and upkeep, and plans to listing publicly. “Within the IPO paperwork, it seems that the corporate will promote the modules with a 19% internet revenue margin by 2022,” Guven mentioned. This compares to margins of 5.7% in 2020 and 0.3% in 2021. Guven estimates that CW Enerji’s present manufacturing output is simply shy of 900 MW.

Enlargement above the stream

At present, the vast majority of photo voltaic manufacturing in Turkey stays module meeting. Attributable to robust demand, bigger and extra established producers are upgrading services to the most recent applied sciences: M10 cell codecs, twin glass encapsulation, massive modules, and multi-busbar interconnection, for instance. Additionally they adopted negatively doped, n-type cells, i.e. TOPCon (tunnel oxide passivated contact) gadgets – pushed by the vagary of the coverage that allowed the import of PV cells from China which have restricted commerce boundaries.

There’s some cell manufacturing capability in Turkey, notably the Kalyon facility exterior the capital Ankara – which additionally has ingot and wafer manufacturing. Istanbul-based Sensible Photo voltaic Applied sciences is known to be persevering with to develop cell manufacturing though some cell manufacturing tools suppliers are reporting sluggish progress.

China’s HT-SAAE has the longest cell manufacturing monitor report in Turkey, with an annual manufacturing capability of about 800 MW. Nevertheless, since its manufacturing is situated within the “Istanbul Free Commerce Zone,” it’s thought-about exterior the Turkish customs zone and operates on an export-only foundation. The corporate presently produces cells and modules in its facility for export, with out commerce restrictions, to the US market. It provides Europe, excluding Turkey, from factories in China.

Vertically built-in producer Kalyon, which not too long ago achieved UL certification for its modules, reviews that it has achieved its first 25 MW gross sales within the US and can be trying to improve gross sales overseas. within the nation. Kalyon acknowledges, nonetheless, that “such low costs” that exist in Europe stay an impediment. The corporate has begun its “section three” manufacturing growth plan, through which it plans so as to add practically 900 MW of cell capability to TOPCon – bringing its whole cell output to 2 GW. Not all traces will serve Kalyon’s in-house ingot and wafer manufacturing.

“Turkey’s photo voltaic export stage, excluding free zone exports, is round $14 million – with most of those exports going to Syria,” mentioned Kaangokay’s Guven.

Tools provide

As a result of robust demand for upgrading and growth, China’s PV module manufacturing tools suppliers are doing robust enterprise in Turkey. As proven within the desk beneath, the nation’s established photo voltaic producers work nearly completely with Chinese language line integrators, together with Jinchen, SC-Photo voltaic, and Confirmware.

Prime 15 energetic PV module producers in Turkey, 2023

* Capability calculations are primarily based on 300 days of operation with three shifts, utilizing M10 cells for photo voltaic panel manufacturing. Some theoretical capacities are estimates. Supply: Kaangokay

Suzhou-based SC-Photo voltaic reported that it provides 16 manufacturing traces in Turkey, with its largest line having an annual manufacturing capability of 500 MW. Smaller manufacturing tools suppliers are additionally gaining floor. Zenith Photo voltaic, which has operations about 300 km exterior of Beijing, reviews that its largest challenge in Turkey is the 750 MW module manufacturing capability supplied by CW Enerji. It additionally sells particular person Kalyon gadgets and targets 500 MW tools gross sales in Turkey this 12 months.

With the outlook for the Turkish market robust – GENSED predicts 30% to 35% annual progress till 2035 – it’s conceivable that the nation’s photo voltaic manufacturing sector will change into an necessary hyperlink to the worldwide PV provide chain, with robust ties to the Chinese language business and proximity, to the sting of Europe. For this to occur, nonetheless, established gamers should proceed to scale to extend competitors and to additional develop the manufacturing provide chain – a course of that Kalyon is presently embarking on.

Such improvement may additionally improve photo voltaic manufacturing facility utilization charges which presently sit at round 30% to 45%, in response to Kaangokay CEO Guven. He says, nonetheless, that “it’s not attainable to make an correct estimate as new producers produce for inventory and a few new producers produce for their very own consumption tasks of funding.”