Why is China pursuing a photovoltaic era?

China’s pursuit of photovoltaic (PV) power, particularly rooftop installations, addresses energy and ecological challenges, aiming to reduce basic energy consumption by 50% by 2030. The northwest region, with its solar potential, is a focal point for distributed PV growth, which has already exceeded 50% of the energy mix by 2021.

Will China become a center of solar PV production?

The last decade has seen the rise of China as the new center of solar photovoltaic power manufacture, and the next will likely see it become a center of its deployment. The chapter explores the conditions that have enabled China’s rapid expansion into solar PV manufacture, and its broad impact on global competition.

When did China start manufacturing domestic solar panels?

China's photovoltaic industry transitioned to the manufacture of domestic panels in the late 1990s. China is the largest market in the world for both photovoltaics and solar thermal energy.

When did photovoltaic research begin in China?

Photovoltaic research in China began in 1958 with the development of China's first piece of monocrystalline silicon. This research continued with the development of solar cells for space satellites in 1968, led by the Institute of Semiconductors of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Where is solar power mainly generated in China?

Most of China's solar power is generated within its western provinces. These regions transfer the generated solar power to other parts of the country. In 2011, China owned the largest solar power plant in the world at the time, the Huanghe Hydropower Golmud Solar Park, which had a photovoltaic capacity of 200 MW.

Is solar photovoltaic power possible in China?

Some previous research has evaluated the geographic and technical potential of solar photovoltaic power in China (Chen et al., 2019; Yang et al., 2019), in which only some basic geographic and climatological factors such as land-use type, slope, and solar radiation are considered.