| Abstract |
In 1995, the State Science and Technology Commission (SSTC) of the People’s Republic of China and the United States Department of Energy (U.S. DOE) jointly signed a cooperation framework on energy efficiency and renewable energy. Since that time, a series of cooperative documents have been signed, and many cooperative projects have been carried out. In 1996, the State Economic and Trade Commission (SETC) of China and the U.S. DOE signed an annex promoting the commercial development of renewable energy enterprises in China and the United States. In light of this agreement, the Renewable Energy Development Center of the Energy Research Institute, under the SSTC, and the U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), conducted a joint project aimed at increasing mutual understanding between renewable energy companies in China and the United States. Other goals of the project include increasing opportunities for business collaboration and widening financing channels through the activities of information exchange, personnel training, and the creation of market opportunities. In this project, experts on both sides conducted a joint systematic investigation of the status of photovoltaic (PV) technology in China, including PV generation technologies, PV systems, and PV manufacturers and sellers. In spite of the rather large market potential, the PV industry in China is a latecomer, and the technical level is rather backward. The PV products are poor in quality and high in price compared with those in developed countries. This greatly restrains the development of PV manufacturers and their market penetration. Most Chinese PV manufacturing enterprises are faced with the problem of updating and reforming their technologies to adapt them to market development and competition. The purpose of this report is to (1) examine the current status of China’s PV industry; (2) understand the interests and market trends for U.S. PV enterprises; and (3) communicate this, along with the Chinese government’s plans and policies for PV development, to promote cooperation between Chinese and U.S. enterprises, thereby advancing the PV industry and its market development in China. |
