Yingli hopes sun shines on market shift(2)

Rebecca Jarschel said her company expects competition in China to intensify.

"Many of our European counterparts have become involved in helping the Chinese develop their expertise," she said.

IMS Research, a leading supplier of market research for the electronics industry, has predicted that Africa, too, will expand its installed solar power capacity by as much as eightfold between now and 2017.

And NPD Solarbuzz, considered the leading consultancy in the photovoltaic industry, recently predicted that Latin America and the Caribbean will see explosive growth in solar power demand, by as much as 45 percent annually over the next five years.

Yingli has been quick to capitalize on that potential, already signing a sponsorship agreement for the football World Cup in Brazil in 2014, after successfully introducing the first Chinese commercial display during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

Late last year it signed a cooperative agreement with the largest PV power station in Peru.

But there are also limitations in emerging markets, experts have warned.

In China itself, for example, it is seen as technically difficult to integrate PV technology into the country's power transmission network, run by the State Grid Corp of China.

Despite the economic and regulatory hurdles facing it in Europe, Jarschel said Yingli is still expanding in the region, its largest market, although the pace has slowed.

Business there is expected to account for just 45 percent of revenues this year, down 25 percent, according to recent media reports quoting Miao Liansheng.

"We are still firmly in the European market, and we are still hiring people, with new teams and offices opening up", particularly in eastern Europe, notably Poland, added Jarschel.

Currently, Yingli has 80 people working in Europe and it expects to increase that to 100 in the next few weeks, at a time when its competitors are cutting their numbers, Jarschel claimed.

Germany remains the company's largest single country market, and in October, Yingli announced plans to establish its European headquarters in Switzerland, as it continues to hold a dominant market position in the region, it said.

"We are still increasing shipments there, but we also recognize margins are falling," added Jarschel.

Since the start of last year, many European countries, including Germany, the United Kingdom and France, have announced plans to reduce or halt subsidies for PV products manufacturers.

According to Jarschel, the key element in Yingli's competitiveness is its level of innovation.

"If you look at the figures, Yingli is still expanding its investment in research and innovation, working with technical experts worldwide on ways to improve the efficiency and performance of our products."

The company has a 12,000-square-meter research and development center in Spain, and also has cooperative agreements with various leading European research institutions, mostly in Germany.

"Companies that invest heavily in technology and innovation have a good chance of survival" even when market conditions are worsening, she added, insisting that her company's market-leading technology is what makes it stand out, even against Western competition.

In many European markets, such as Germany, where government subsidies have been readily available in the past, when they stop, companies will feel the effect, she said.

"Even some German companies have been reluctant to invest in strengthening their levels of innovation, and when the policies change, it will be a big blow.

"But, in several markets, even in Europe, our customers can install our solar power stations at the same price or even lower (than local suppliers).

"We have reached parity, and we don't need subsidies."