China Solar Group and regulator propose reforms in tendering to increase prices

The Chinese industry ministry and the solar sector association are proposing changes to power plant tendering in order to combat falling equipment prices which has led to manufacturers making losses.

China's solar panels producers are calling for government intervention to boost prices that have been kept low due to overcapacity, even though China's trading partner have complained about overproduction's effects on their domestic industries.

In the proposed plan, buyers will take into consideration non-price factors when purchasing solar equipment, and adopt a two-stage, more detailed tendering system. The China Photovoltaic Industry Association said this in a WeChat posting late Monday.

The group announced that it had convened on August 29 a meeting which brought together state-owned energy producers such as Huadian Group, Datang Group and some of the largest solar panel manufacturers in the world, including Longi Green Energy.

It added that the meeting was held under the auspices of Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

According to the announcement, the current tendering system is "an important factor in the continual decline of the price of solar products."

The new proposal would evaluate bids for solar equipment on factors like product quality, reliability, technological innovations, and environmental and social impacts. This includes how environmentally sustainable the supply chains are.

CPIA announced that it would be the first to create price and cost indexes, which could serve as the basis for a new price mechanism. (Reporting and editing by Barbara Lewis; Colleen Liu and Siyi Liu)

(source: Reuters)