Energy
Visualizing China’s Dominance in the Solar Panel Supply Chain
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China’s Dominance in the Solar Panel Supply Chain
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Many governments are investing in renewable energy sources like solar power, but who controls the manufacturing of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels?
As it turns out, China owns the vast majority of the world’s solar panel supply chain, controlling at least 75% of every single key stage of solar photovoltaic panel manufacturing and processing.
This visualization shows the shares held by different countries and regions of the key stages of solar panel manufacturing, using data from the International Energy Agency (IEA).
Solar Panel Manufacturing, by Country and Stage
From polysilicon production to soldering finished solar cells and modules onto panels, China has the largest share in every stage of solar panel manufacturing.
Even back in 2010, the country made the majority of the world’s solar panels, but over the past 12 years, its average share of the solar panel supply chain has gone from 55% to 84%.
China also continues to lead in terms of investment, making up almost two-thirds of global large-scale solar investment. In the first half of 2022, the country invested $41 billion, a 173% increase from the year before.
| Country/Region | Solar Panel Demand | Average Share of Solar Panel Manufacturing Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| China | 36.4% | 84.0% |
| Europe | 16.8% | 2.9% |
| North America | 17.6% | 2.8% |
| Asia-Pacific | 13.2% | 9.1% |
| India | 6.9% | 1.3% |
| Rest of the World | 9.1% | 0.8% |
Source: IEA
Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding
After China, the next leading nation in solar panel manufacturing is India, which makes up almost 3% of solar module manufacturing and 1% of cell manufacturing. To help meet the country’s goal of 280 gigawatts (GW) of installed solar power capacity by 2030 (currently 57.9 GW), in 2022 the Indian government allocated an additional $2.6 billion to its production-linked incentive scheme that supports domestic solar PV panel manufacturing.
Alongside China and India, the Asia-Pacific region also makes up significant amounts of solar panel manufacturing, especially modules and cells at 15.4% and 12.4% respectively.
While Europe and North America make up more than one-third of the global demand for solar panels, both regions make up an average of just under 3% each across all stages of actually manufacturing solar panels.
Too Little Too Late to Diversify?
China’s dominance of solar photovoltaic panel manufacturing is not the only stranglehold the country has on renewable energy infrastructure and materials.
When it comes to wind, in 2021 China built more offshore wind turbines than all other countries combined over the past five years, and the country is also the leading producer and processor of the rare earth minerals essential for the magnets that power turbine generators.
In its full report on solar panel manufacturing, the IEA emphasized the importance of distributing global solar panel manufacturing capacity. Recent unexpected manufacturing halts in China have resulted in the price of polysilicon rising to 10-year highs, revealing the world’s dependence on China for the supply of key materials.
As the world builds out its solar and wind energy capacity, will it manage to avoid repeating Europe’s mistakes of energy import overdependence when it comes to the materials and manufacturing of renewable energy infrastructure?
Energy
Visualizing the Scale of Global Fossil Fuel Production
How much oil, coal, and natural gas do we extract each year? See the scale of annual fossil fuel production in perspective.
The Scale of Global Fossil Fuel Production
This was originally posted on Elements. Sign up to the free mailing list to get beautiful visualizations on natural resource megatrends in your email every week.
Fossil fuels have been our predominant source of energy for over a century, and the world still extracts and consumes a colossal amount of coal, oil, and gas every year.
This infographic visualizes the volume of global fossil fuel production in 2021 using data from BP’s Statistical Review of World Energy.
The Facts on Fossil Fuels
In 2021, the world produced around 8 billion tonnes of coal, 4 billion tonnes of oil, and over 4 trillion cubic meters of natural gas.
Most of the coal is used to generate electricity for our homes and offices and has a key role in steel production. Similarly, natural gas is a large source of electricity and heat for industries and buildings. Oil is primarily used by the transportation sector, in addition to petrochemical manufacturing, heating, and other end uses.
Here’s a full breakdown of coal, oil, and gas production by country in 2021.
Coal Production
If all the coal produced in 2021 were arranged in a cube, it would measure 2,141 meters (2.1km) on each side—more than 2.5 times the height of the world’s tallest building.
China produced 50% or more than four billion tonnes of the world’s coal in 2021. It’s also the largest consumer of coal, accounting for 54% of coal consumption in 2021.
| Rank | Country | 2021 Coal Production (million tonnes) | % of Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | 🇨🇳 China | 4,126.0 | 50% |
| #2 | 🇮🇳 India | 811.3 | 10% |
| #3 | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | 614.0 | 8% |
| #4 | 🇺🇸 U.S. | 524.4 | 6% |
| #5 | 🇦🇺 Australia | 478.6 | 6% |
| #6 | 🇷🇺 Russia | 433.7 | 5% |
| #7 | 🇿🇦 South Africa | 234.5 | 3% |
| #8 | 🇩🇪 Germany | 126.0 | 2% |
| #9 | 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan | 115.7 | 1% |
| #10 | 🇵🇱 Poland | 107.6 | 1% |
| 🌍 Other | 600.9 | 7% | |
| Total | 8,172.6 | 100% |
India is both the second largest producer and consumer of coal. Meanwhile, Indonesia is the world’s largest coal exporter, followed by Australia.
In the West, U.S. coal production was down 47% as compared to 2011 levels, and the descent is likely to continue with the clean energy transition.
Oil Production
In 2021, the United States, Russia, and Saudi Arabia were the three largest crude oil producers, respectively.
| Rank | Country | 2021 Oil Production (million tonnes) | % of Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | 🇺🇸 U.S. | 711.1 | 17% |
| #2 | 🇷🇺 Russia | 536.4 | 13% |
| #3 | 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia | 515.0 | 12% |
| #4 | 🇨🇦 Canada | 267.1 | 6% |
| #5 | 🇮🇶 Iraq | 200.8 | 5% |
| #6 | 🇨🇳 China | 198.9 | 5% |
| #7 | 🇮🇷 Iran | 167.7 | 4% |
| #8 | 🇦🇪 UAE | 164.4 | 4% |
| #9 | 🇧🇷 Brazil | 156.8 | 4% |
| #10 | 🇰🇼 Kuwait | 131.1 | 3% |
| 🌍 Other | 1172.0 | 28% | |
| Total | 4221.4 | 100% |
OPEC countries, including Saudi Arabia, made up the largest share of production at 35% or 1.5 billion tonnes of oil.
U.S. oil production has seen significant growth since 2010. In 2021, the U.S. extracted 711 million tonnes of oil, more than double the 333 million tonnes produced in 2010.
Natural Gas Production
The world produced 4,036 billion cubic meters of natural gas in 2021. The above graphic converts that into an equivalent of seven billion cubic meters of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to visualize it on the same scale as oil and gas.
Here are the top 10 producers of natural gas in 2021:
| Rank | Country | 2021 Natural Gas Production (billion m3) | % of Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | 🇺🇸 U.S. | 934.2 | 23% |
| #2 | 🇷🇺 Russia | 701.7 | 17% |
| #3 | 🇮🇷 Iran | 256.7 | 6% |
| #4 | 🇨🇳 China | 209.2 | 5% |
| #5 | 🇶🇦 Qatar | 177.0 | 4% |
| #6 | 🇨🇦 Canada | 172.3 | 4% |
| #7 | 🇦🇺 Australia | 147.2 | 4% |
| #8 | 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia | 117.3 | 3% |
| #9 | 🇳🇴 Norway | 114.3 | 3% |
| #10 | 🇩🇿 Algeria | 100.8 | 2% |
| 🌍 Other | 1106.3 | 27% | |
| Total | 4,036.9 | 100% |
The U.S. was the largest producer, with Texas and Pennsylvania accounting for 47% of its gas production. The U.S. electric power and industrial sectors account for around one-third of domestic natural gas consumption.
Russia, the next-largest producer, was the biggest exporter of gas in 2021. It exported an estimated 210 billion cubic meters of natural gas via pipelines to Europe and China. Around 80% of Russian natural gas comes from operations in the Arctic region.
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