A number of factors are pointing to a major investment push to large-scale solar, a boom that has been a long time in the making but is now ticking nearly all the investment boxes. On the international market, this includes the continued fall in solar manufacturing costs, and an expected surplus of manufacturing capacity in coming years that will force manufacturers to slash margins, driving prices down further. Locally, the situation in Australia is being enhanced by the continued high price of large-scale renewable energy certificates, the imminent results of a major solar tender by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, and the growing appetite for solar investments by financiers and equity investors. Last week, the world's biggest solar manufacturers all agreed that the market will be facing another round of over-supply in the next year as major investment in more capacity - from the likes of JinkoSolar, Trina and Canadian, the three biggest manufacturers - are completed. Bloomberg last week noted that capacity will jump 18 per cent this year, and the major companies are flagging that not only are the costs of manufacturing coming down, but the major companies will likely have to reduce their margins as they protect market share. "Chinese solar manufacturers now face tougher competition due to a supply capacity increase and a decrease in market demand," Yingli Green Energy Vice President and Chief Climate Officer Jingfeng Xiong said during a call Tuesday with analysts. Bloomberg noted that demand for solar is continuing to rise, but that growth is slowing. Global installations this year may reach about 67GW, up 27 per cent from last year, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance. In 2017, it's expected to increase by 25 per cent, and in 2018 it will rise another 23 per cent. But the fall in manufacturing costs - estimated by the major manufacturers at around 10 to 15 per cent a year - and the cut in margins in the international market, will also play into the Australian sector, which is poised to experience a watershed moment in coming weeks. The ARENA tender, to be announced in the next fortnight, is expected to be a catalyst for more than $1 billion in investment in the next 12 months, ...Den vollständigen Artikel lesen ...