Silicon raw materials prices to remain strong in 2021, new silicon-based materials have huge development potential

Published: Mar 12, 2021 14:12
At the 8th China Silicon Industry Chain Summit 2021. Alicia Yang, senior analyst at SMM, gave a deep-dive on the industrial silicon demand and supply in domestic markets.

CHANGZHOU, Mar 12 (SMM)—Rising power costs and higher raw materials prices are expected to boost silicon metal prices in 2021, according to SMM's senior analyst Alicia Yang yesterday at the  8th China Silicon Industry Chain Summit 2021 in Changzhou, Jiangsu.

"Silicon metal is not what it used to be, and new silicon-based materials boast huge development potential", Yang said. She was sharing her insights on the demand and supply movements of the China domestic industrial silicon markets in 2020, as well as her market outlook for 2021.

"DMC prices soared to above 30,000 yuan/mt before dropping rapidly in 2020, and are likely to continue to fluctuate at high levels in 2021. Polysilicon prices are expected to remain strong in 2021 amid shortages of raw materials and improving downstream demand.

"Consumption of organic silicon monomer, polysilicon and aluminium alloy has increased, but no new capacities will be brought online. Rising power costs and higher raw materials prices are expected to boost silicon metal prices in 2021," Yang analysed.

Data Source Statement: Except for publicly available information, all other data are processed by SMM based on publicly available information, market communication, and relying on SMM's internal database model. They are for reference only and do not constitute decision-making recommendations.

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