EVA is in full production, full sales and insufficient supply, setting off a construction boom in China

As the core raw material of photovoltaic film, the supply of photovoltaic-grade ethylene-vinyl acetate polymer (EVA) particles is insufficient, which has become a bottleneck affecting the development of the photovoltaic industry. It is against this background that a boom in EVA project construction has started in China. A reporter from Securities Times·e Company recently learned during an on-site visit to Sierbon Petrochemical, a subsidiary of Oriental Shenghong, that the company's EVA particles continue to be in full production and full sales. After the planned new EVA production capacity of 700,000 tons/year reaches capacity in the future, Sierbon The total petrochemical EVA production capacity will reach 1 million tons/year.

“The next few years will be a period of rapid growth in domestic photovoltaic material market demand. Although the domestic production of EVA photovoltaic materials continues to increase, the supply gap is expected to narrow, but the gap will not be completely filled within 2 to 3 years. "Zhang Xiaohan, senior consultant of China National Chemical Information Center (hereinafter referred to as "China National Chemical Information Center"), told reporters that the overall price of EVA may rebound in the fourth quarter of this year, and the demand for EVA in the photovoltaic market will still be relatively strong next year. It cannot be fully released, and there is still a large gap. It is expected that the price of EVA photovoltaic materials will probably remain at a high level next year."

Silban EVA is fully produced and sold

In Lianyungang Xu. In the EVA finished product workshop of Dongfang Shenghong Sirbon Petrochemical, a national petrochemical industry base in Wei New District, 25 kilograms of photovoltaic-grade EVA resin per bag is piled up into "hills." Soon, these products will be shipped to photovoltaic film manufacturers across the country.

Photovoltaic grade EVA resin is a new material processed from ethylene vinyl acetate polymer. It is mainly used to produce photovoltaic films and is an indispensable packaging material for photovoltaic modules. It has the characteristics of high light transmittance, UV resistance, and resistance to moisture and heat yellowing, which directly determines the product quality and service life of photovoltaic modules. Research shows that EVA resin with a vinyl acetate (VA) content of 28% to 33% and a melt flow rate (MFR) of about 40 is most suitable for encapsulating EVA film.

The reporter learned that the current mainstream EVA production processes in my country include the tubular method and the kettle method. The tubular method is mainly used for films and cables, and the kettle method is mainly used for foaming and coating. , hot melt adhesive, cables and other fields. "We are the first company in China to successfully develop the preparation method and production formula of photovoltaic-grade EVA using the EVA tubular process, and can mass-produce photovoltaic-grade EVA in a long period. The original design capacity of the device is 200,000 tons/year." Si Er Chen Sheng, production manager of Bangpec EVA Division, introduced to reporters.

Silban Petrochemical's tubular EVA device was successfully put into operation in March 2017, which solved the "stuck neck" technical problem of photovoltaic-grade EVA in my country's photovoltaic industry and greatly eased the contradiction between supply and demand in the downstream market.

Since the beginning of this year, the photovoltaic-grade EVA product of Sierpan Petrochemical Tube Plant has been continuously operated for more than 100 days, significantly breaking the previous record of 52 days. This photovoltaic-grade EVA product leads the world in its long-term operation record. According to reports, Sierbon Petrochemical’s EVA production capacity last year was 300,000 tons/year, accounting for approximately 20.38% of the total domestic production capacity. Among them, the photovoltaic-grade EVA production capacity exceeded 200,000 tons/year, accounting for approximately 28% of the global photovoltaic-grade EVA production. In fact, The production capacity ranks first in the country.

The financial report shows that in 2021, Dongfang Shenghong EVA sales volume was 343,600 tons, sales revenue was 6.396 billion yuan, gross profit margin was 44%, and the average product price increased by about 90%.

“Affected by industry demand, especially the rapid rise in the price of photovoltaic products, has driven the rise of EVA products across the board.” Long Yuteng, product manager of Sierpan Petrochemical EVA Division, told reporters that the company’s EVA customers are basically covered All domestic film companies have continued to be at full production and full sales. "In the first seven months of this year, Sierbon's photovoltaic-grade EVA output increased by 26.3% compared with the same period last year."

Insufficient supply

There is a construction boom in the country

China is the country with the largest EVA production and consumption in the world. According to statistics, China's EVA production in 2021 is 1.0076 million tons, the apparent consumption is 2.053 million tons, and the self-sufficiency rate is about 49%. Due to high production barriers for photovoltaic-grade EVA, long production expansion cycles, and many restrictions on production conversion, there are only a handful of companies that can produce photovoltaic-grade EVA.

According to industry insiders, as of the end of last year, only three companies, Sierpan Petrochemical, Levima Xinco, and Ningbo Formosa Plastics, could stably produce photovoltaic-grade EVA resin, with a total production capacity of approximately 300,000 tons per year. In comparison, domestic consumption of photovoltaic-grade EVA reached 800,000 tons during the same period, with import dependence exceeding 60%. The insufficient supply of photovoltaic-grade EVA has become a bottleneck affecting the development of the photovoltaic industry. It is against this background that the EVA project construction boom has started in China.

As an industry leader, Sierpan Petrochemical is ambitious in the EVA project. Chen Sheng told a reporter from Securities Times·e Company that Sierbon Petrochemical is planning to add 700,000 tons/year EVA production capacity in the second phase, including three sets of 200,000 tons/year tubular units and one set of 100,000 tons/year. For the kettle type unit, "the first unit will be put into operation in September 2024, and we will strive to put all of them into operation in 2025." After the second phase of the Sirpan Petrochemical EVA project reaches full production, the company's total EVA production capacity will exceed 1 million tons per year.

Levima Xinco is also continuing to increase its investment.

In March this year, after the completion of Levima Xinke's "EVA device tubular tail technology upgrade project", the output increased to more than 150,000 tons/year, of which the proportion of photovoltaic film materials in the production schedule has stabilized at more than 80%. On this basis, the company also announced the launch of the construction of 200,000 tons of photovoltaic material production capacity.

Rongsheng Petrochemical stated on the interactive platform that its Zhejiang Petrochemical EVA device can produce 300,000 tons of photovoltaic materials per year, and is currently planning to further expand production. The Baofeng Energy Phase III project has the capacity to produce 250,000 tons of EVA per year. During the investigation by the reception organization, the company stated that the EVA project under construction can produce foaming materials, cable materials, and photovoltaic packaging materials. In the future, it will decide which types to produce based on market demand. product. The project is currently progressing smoothly and is expected to be completed in mid-2023. In addition, Yu Nenghua produced photovoltaic-grade EVA in August last year, and Sinochem Quanzhou's 100,000 tons/year EVA plant produced photovoltaic-grade EVA last year.

Chemical statistics show that the total production capacity of domestic EVA manufacturers in 2022 will be 1.922 million tons. If the construction goes smoothly, three units expected to be put into operation between 2022 and 2023 include Gulei, Xinjiang Tianli, and Ningxia Baofeng. According to China Chemical Information Technology's forecast, EVA production capacity is expected to increase to 2.67 million tons/year by the end of 2023.

Market prices next year

are expected to fluctuate at high levels

Can the vigorous construction boom break the supply bottleneck of photovoltaic-grade EVA?

"Photovoltaic The trial production cycle of EVA materials is very long. "Zhang Xiaohan said that it will take at least two years from the completion of the project to the stable production of photovoltaic EVA materials in large quantities. "Even if the EVA equipment of many companies has been put into production, they are still far away from being able to continuously and stably produce photovoltaic materials. There is a long way to go, and the output ratio of photovoltaic materials in the early stage is not high.”

An industry insider also bluntly told the Securities Times e Company reporter that although many companies currently promote the ability to mass-produce photovoltaic-grade EVA. , but in fact the output and quality need to be further verified. “The quality of the photovoltaic-grade EVA produced by some companies is not very high, and it cannot be used alone for the time being. When the market demand for photovoltaic-grade EVA products is strong, it can only be mixed with other companies’ products. Mixed together. "

According to statistics from the China Photovoltaic Industry Association, in the first half of this year, domestic photovoltaic power generation installed capacity was 30.88GW, a year-on-year increase of 137.4%. This data has exceeded the total installed capacity in the first ten months of last year. At the 2022 Photovoltaic Industry Chain Supply Forum, Wang Bohua, honorary chairman of the China Photovoltaic Industry Association, said that based on the installation plans of each province, it is optimistically expected that the photovoltaic market may start an acceleration mode, and the forecast for new installed capacity this year will be increased by 10GW. Achieve 85GW~100GW.

As of now, 25 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions have made clear wind and solar installation plans during the "14th Five-Year Plan" period, of which the newly installed photovoltaic capacity exceeds 392.16GW, and an additional 344.48GW will be added in the next four years. In terms of the global market, it is expected that this year The newly installed capacity is 205GW~250GW.

“1GW installed capacity corresponds to approximately 5,000 tons of photovoltaic film raw materials.” Long Yuteng said that EVA accounts for about 85% of photovoltaic film raw materials. “It is expected that the demand for photovoltaic grade EVA this year will be 1 million. tons to 1.05 million tons."

Long Yuteng told reporters that domestic EVA sales in the first half of this year exceeded expectations. "The third quarter may not be very good due to industry chain coordination issues, but everyone is still there in the fourth quarter. Be optimistic. The upcoming release of silicon material production capacity will become an important factor in the booming sales of photovoltaic grade EVA in the fourth quarter." Shanxi Securities Research Report predicts that the supply and demand of photovoltaic grade EVA will continue to be tight this year and next year. equilibrium state. From a price perspective, EVA particles are still consolidating and oscillating at a relatively high level in history.

According to calculations by China Chemical Information Technology Corporation, domestic demand for photovoltaic-grade EVA in 2022 and 2023 will be 1.01 million tons and 1.22 million tons respectively. "The next few years will be a period of rapid growth in domestic photovoltaic material market demand. Although the domestic production of EVA photovoltaic materials continues to increase and the supply gap is expected to narrow, the gap will not be fully filled within 2 to 3 years." Zhang Xiaohan said, affected by Affected by the "Golden Nine and Silver Ten" on the demand side, the overall price of EVA may rebound in the fourth quarter of 2022. "The demand for EVA in the photovoltaic market will still be relatively strong next year. The newly put into production capacity will not be able to continuously produce qualified photovoltaic materials in the short term. Domestic still There is a large gap, so the price of EVA photovoltaic materials is expected to remain high next year.”

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