HONG KONG: Rising demand for a niche material used in solar panels has sent shares of top producer GCL-Poly Energy Holdings Ltd soaring and swelled the fortune of its billionaire founder, delivering an early winner in the global push to tame greenhouse gas emissions.
Prices have boomed for polysilicon, an ultra-refined form of the mineral found in beach sand and used to convert photons of light into electricity. Factories will need to run all out this year as key markets including China, Europe and the United States accelerate the deployment of solar power to help meet climate targets.
Global solar installations are forecast to jump more than 80% through 2025, and China will double capacity during that period as the nation curbs its reliance on fossil fuels. China’s leaders are expected to mandate a further acceleration in deployment of clean energy in a 14th Five Year Plan due this week.
Hong-Kong based GCL-Poly, the biggest polysilicon producer by capacity, has seen its shares surge by more than 910% since president Xi Jinping’s announcement in September that China would aim to become carbon-neutral by 2060. Competitors like Daqo New Energy Co and Xinte Energy Co have also posted huge advances, underscoring how quickly policy shifts in the world’s biggest economies can impact companies that supply equipment and materials for carbon-free energy.
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