- A quadrupling in the cost of polysilicon has pushed solar module prices up 18% YTD after plunging 90% over the previous decade, a reversal that threatens to delay projects and slow the uptake of solar power (NYSEARCA:TAN) just as major governments increasingly support it in an effort to slow climate change, Bloomberg reports.
- Makers of polysilicon have been unable to keep up with demand, lifting prices to as high as $25.88/kg, up from $6.19/kg less than a year ago, and Roth Capital analysts expect prices to remain elevated through the end of 2022.
- "Developers and governments are going to have to stop expecting solar to get much cheaper quickly," BloombergNEF lead solar analyst Jenny Chase says while trimming its forecast for solar buildout this year, citing rising prices of materials including polysilicon as one reason.
- Panel-maker Canadian Solar (NASDAQ:CSIQ) warned on last week's earnings conference call that higher prices are affecting demand and may delay some large-scale projects.
- Prices for steel, aluminum and copper are also surging, as are freight charges, and solar microinverter supplier Enphase Energy (NASDAQ:ENPH) has warned that it expects shipment volumes to be held back by semiconductor shortage.
- On the bright side, the interruption in the long-term downward trend in costs is partly offset by a continual improvement in the efficiency of solar panels, Nitin Apte, CEO of Asian renewable power operator Vena Energy tells Bloomberg.
- Other relevant tickers include FSLR, SPWR, SEDG, RUN, JKS, SUNW, NOVA, ARRY
- Other ETFs include ICLN, QCLN
- Green energy stocks have largely drifted lower since around February.