On November 3, Sungrow, a leading PV inverter and energy storage solutions provider, predicted its inverter shipments in the fourth quarter and the whole year, and said that its annual shipment is expected to reach 45 GW in 2021.
While the overseas market is developing well especially in Europe and the US, the greatest uncertainty comes from the domestic market, according to Sungrow.
In China, only 25 GW of solar was installed in the first three quarters of the year due to the surge in module prices. Among them, 11 GW were installed in the residential market. Ground-mounted solar PV stations, however, see reduced installation capacity and speed.
Despite that, Sungrow’s overall annual shipment in 2021 still maintained an increase over the same period last year. If 150 GW of solar is to be installed globally and Sungrow takes up 30% of global market share, the company’s annual shipment is expected to reach 45 GW in 2021.
Sungrow also admits that chip has been in tight supply since the beginning of this year. As a leading inverter manufacturer, Sungrow has established in-depth strategic partnership with chip manufacturers such as Infineon, Onsemi and Fuji. At the end of last year, the company has basically secured chip provision for 2021 and communicated its future demands with partners monthly and even weekly.
At present, the chip stock for centralized and large string inverters is sufficient for the fourth quarter. However, there is still a shortage of small power devices. The residential market witnessed an explosive growth, resulting in the tight supply of small power devices.
Sungrow predicts that the price of inverter is unlikely to reduce next year. Third-party organization predicts that the global PV installed capacity is expected to be 220 GW next year, which means huge market demand for inverters. However, semiconductors and chips may still remain in short supply next year.
