The renewable sector in most countries is largely dependent on imports from other regions, mainly China, and major global suppliers of solar PV modules include Chinese players such as Trina Solar, Yingli, Hanwa, Jinko, and Rene Solar. A poll conducted in May by GlobalData found that 47% of respondants believe that there will be a high impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on renewable energy projects due to import dependency. Another 26% believed that there will be a moderate impact, while 27% expected the COVID-19 pandemic to have either low or no impact on renewable energy projects because of import dependency.
Global material supply constraints - dependancy from China
Somik Das, Senior Power Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in the components and equipment manufacturers pausing production at their production sites for several months resulting in global material supply constraints. The disruption is seen more in the case of the solar PV suppliers because they are highly concentrated in China and are hence affected to a greater extent.
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Diversify manufacturing across different regions
“Companies with long term harbored renewable energy projects are expected to face a great deal of inconvenience, increase their exposure to risks and liabilities due to delays in equipment procurement and labor shortages. However, the pandemic has taught the industry, the negative aspects of being overly dependent on any one nation as a base for supplying components. Diversifying manufacturing across different regions will help the industry to avoid any supply chain bottlenecks arising out of crises in the future.” (HCN)
