Maxeon Solar Technologies reported that its financial position deteriorated sharply in the first half of 2025, posting $65.5 million in net losses as revenue tumbled 89.5% year over year to $39 million. Shipments fell dramatically as well, dropping 84.9% to 153.2 MW. Chief Executive George Guo attributed the downturn to the ongoing US Customs and Border Protection import ban enacted in July 2024, which has blocked Maxeon panels from entering the US market for more than a year. The company is contesting the decision and filed a lawsuit with the US Court of International Trade on July 15, arguing that CBP misapplied the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act and exceeded its authority. Maxeon warned that the trade restrictions have inflicted sustained and severe damage on its operations.
Meanwhile, China’s solar manufacturing and procurement activity continued at a massive scale. Power Construction Corp. of China initiated one of the world’s largest mounting-system tenders, seeking 60 GW of fixed PV mounting structures for delivery from 2025 to 2027. The plan includes 24 GW of hot-dip galvanized steel mounts, equal to about 840,000 tonnes, and 36 GW of zinc-aluminum-magnesium mounts, totaling roughly 1.26 million metric tons of material.
China Resources Power also moved forward with its second major solar module procurement round for 2025, soliciting bids for 3 GW of n-type TOPCon bifacial modules. More than 20 manufacturers participated across three lots, submitting prices between CNY 0.673 and 0.776 per watt, with the average offer settling around CNY 0.74 per watt — a substantial rise compared with bid levels posted just two weeks earlier, reflecting shifting supply-demand dynamics in China’s module market.
Amid this procurement activity, China’s National Energy Administration convened a meeting with six government ministries, including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, to tighten regulatory oversight of the solar sector. Officials committed to strengthening investment controls, phasing out outdated production lines, and cracking down on what they described as unhealthy, low-price competition. The agencies called for more rigorous monitoring of pricing and product quality, as well as stronger enforcement against sales below cost, misleading marketing, inflated performance ratings, and violations of intellectual property rights.
Upstream materials markets also showed signs of movement. Polysilicon prices climbed again in the week leading up to Aug. 21, with n-type reprocessed feedstock rising to CNY 47,900 per ton, up 1.05% from the previous week, and n-type granular silicon increasing 3.37% to CNY 46,000 per ton. Six companies signed contracts during the period, with smaller-volume deals pushing averages higher even as larger contracts held steady. Production among the nine active polysilicon manufacturers is expected to remain close to 125,000 metric tons for August. Wafer pricing stayed largely unchanged, with n-type G10L wafers at CNY 1.2, G12R wafers at CNY 1.35, and G12 wafers at CNY 1.55.
Together, these developments highlight a global solar industry experiencing intense regulatory scrutiny, price volatility, and rapidly shifting competitive pressures — all central themes driving coverage across the Energy News landscape.