Emerging from a special report released last week by the International Energy Agency (IEA) is the central observation that ensuring a secure transition to net zero emissions will require increased efforts to expand and diversify global production of solar panels whose global supply chains are currently heavily concentrated in China. The report is the first study of its kind by the Agency.
Chinese industrial and innovation policies focused on expanding solar panel production and markets have helped solar PV become the most affordable electricity generation technology in many parts of the world. However, according to the IEA “Special Report on Solar PV Global Supply Chains,” this has also led to imbalances in solar PV supply chains.
