The spot silicon metal price slightly declined, while the price of 210R solar cells showed an upward trend [SMM Silicon-Based PV Morning Meeting Summary].

Silica

Prices

This week, silica prices remained stable, while the silicon metal market continued to show weakness. Industry operations were mainly driven by leading manufacturers, which generally have their own silica resources. Small-scale silicon plants operated at low levels, and overall demand for silica procurement was insufficient. Many traders reported difficulties in selling silica recently. Currently, mine-mouth prices for low-grade silica in Yunnan are at 330-350 yuan/mt, high-grade silica in Inner Mongolia at 350-380 yuan/mt, high-grade silica in Hubei at 400-450 yuan/mt, and high-grade silica in Jiangxi at 430-460 yuan/mt.

Production

The overall supply of silica from mines remains relatively ample.

Demand

Leading downstream silicon plants generally have supplementary silica resources, while small and medium-sized silicon plants operate at low levels, with recent procurement demand remaining weak.

Silicon Metal

Prices

This week, some spot silicon metal prices saw a slight decline. In east China, above-standard #553 silicon was priced at 10,700-10,900 yuan/mt, with the average price down by 50 yuan/mt during the week. #441 silicon was priced at 11,100-11,300 yuan/mt, remaining flat during the week. Downstream buyers showed strong price suppression sentiment, and orders were limited. Silicon producers faced difficulties in selling, with some offering slight discounts for transactions. Prices for low-grade silicon experienced a slight downward trend.

Production:

From January to February, the supply-demand balance for silicon showed a slight destocking, with a balance of approximately negative 30,000 mt over the two months. According to supply-demand balance data, this was the first destocking since May 2024.

Inventory

Social Inventory: As of February 14, SMM statistics showed that the national social inventory of silicon metal totaled 544,000 mt, up by 1,000 mt WoW. Among this, general social warehouses held 149,000 mt, down by 1,000 mt WoW, while social delivery warehouses (including spot cargo) held 395,000 mt, up by 2,000 mt WoW. (This inventory data excludes regions such as Inner Mongolia and Ningxia.)

Silicon Wafer

Prices

Market prices for N-type 18X silicon wafers were at 1.16-1.18 yuan/piece, while N-type 210RN silicon wafers were priced at 1.25-1.35 yuan/piece. Silicon wafer prices remained stable, with differing attitudes between leading manufacturers and second- and third-tier manufacturers.

Production

In February, silicon wafer production continued to increase. March production schedules are expected to be significantly influenced by industry self-discipline, with production schedules falling short of market supply-demand expectations. The production schedule is expected to show limited changes MoM from February.

Inventory

Recently, some transactions for silicon wafers have occurred, but overall inventory changes have been limited. Integrated inventory has slightly increased.

Solar Cell

Prices

Prices for high-efficiency PERC182 solar cells (efficiency of 23.2% and above) were at 0.325-0.33 yuan/W, with high-end prices slightly declining. There were no transactions in the PERC210 solar cell market. Prices for Topcon183 solar cells (efficiency of 25% and above) were around 0.285-0.29 yuan/W, with high-end prices slightly declining. Topcon210RN solar cells were priced at 0.28-0.29 yuan/W, showing an upward trend, while Topcon210 solar cells were priced at 0.285-0.29 yuan/W, with prices slightly declining. Mainstream HJT210 half-cell products were priced at 0.36-0.38 yuan/W, with prices remaining stable.

Production

More solar cell manufacturers resumed operations, leading to increased output. The operating rate in February was higher than in January.

Inventory

Solar cells were being shipped normally, and inventory levels decreased. However, there was insufficient upward momentum in order volumes this week.

PV Film

Prices

PV-Grade EVA

Transaction prices for PV-grade EVA were at 11,200-11,500 yuan/mt. Domestic delivery-to-factory prices for PV-grade POE were approximately 12,000-13,500 yuan/mt, with POE prices remaining stable.

PV Film

Currently, mainstream prices for 420g transparent EVA film are at 5.29-5.46 yuan/m², 420g white EVA film at 5.67-6.05 yuan/m², 380g EPE film at 5.79-5.89 yuan/m², and 380g POE film at 6.84-7.22 yuan/m².

Production

In February, the planned production of PV-grade EVA was approximately 110,000 mt, while the planned production of PV film was around 340 million m².

Inventory

Currently, petrochemical enterprise inventories are relatively low. With the increase in module production, EVA demand is expected to grow significantly. On the supply side, reductions due to maintenance and planned production shifts are anticipated, keeping inventory levels low.