GreenergyDaily

Jan. 6, 2026

Longi Green Energy Technology Co. will begin substituting base metals for silver in its solar cells, the latest move by the industry to mitigate the surging cost of the precious metal.

Mass production using base metals is expected to start in the second quarter, which will help “further lower the costs of solar modules,” Longi said in a filing on Monday.

The shift comes as solar manufacturers, the largest industrial consumers of silver, struggle with overcapacity and intense competition. Record prices, driven by safe-haven demand linked to geopolitical tensions, and interest-rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, have only accelerated the trend to slash usage of the most costly component in solar cell production.

Prices of the metal — prized for its wide range of industrial applications — tripled last year as investor demand collided with constrained supply. In October, silver trading in the $50-an-ounce range translated to more than 17% of the per-watt price of solar modules, up from 12% two months before and 3% in 2023, according to BloombergNEF. Late last month, silver topped $84 an ounce.

Other Chinese solar manufacturers taking a similar approach include Jinko Solar Co., which said in December it could achieve large-scale output of panels this year that use base metals such as copper. Shanghai Aiko Solar Energy Co., a smaller rival, has already launched production of silver-free solar cells, with initial capacity of 6.5 gigawatts.