Forced labor in the manufacturing of solar panels?
There is a lot of concern about potential human rights violations against Uyghurs in western China. The Chinese government has been accused of suppressing this ethnic group, placing them in re-education camps, and using them for forced labor. One known industry where forced labor is reported is cotton production.
Besides cotton, forced labor is also suspected in the manufacturing of solar panels. Of course, no solar energy company in the Netherlands wants to be associated with such practices. The solution seems simple: stop selling or installing products linked to forced labor! However, it turns out that achieving this is not so straightforward.
Why Is It So Complicated?
Solar panels are made up of solar cells, which are placed on a large flat plate and connected with electrical wiring. During assembly, a glass cover and a metal frame are added to complete the panel.
The solar cells themselves are about 16x16 cm and are made from ultra-thin slices of silicon, called wafers. This silicon must first be refined to a high degree of purity and processed to function as a semiconductor.
The production process consists of multiple steps:
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Extracting and purifying silicon.
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Doping the silicon, slicing it into wafers, and making solar cells.
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Assembling the solar cells into a finished panel with electrical connections, a backplate, a glass cover, and a frame.
These steps are usually carried out by different companies across various locations worldwide.
Production Process of Solar Panels: From Purified Silicon to the Finished Product
Silicon from Xinjiang
The concern in Xinjiang mainly involves the first step: refining silicon into its purest form. According to research by Bernreuter Research, 45% of the world’s solar-grade silicon comes from Xinjiang. The biggest companies operating in this region include Xinte Energy, Daqo, GCL-Poly Energy, and East Hope.
The Chinese government has encouraged businesses to relocate to Xinjiang to boost economic activity in remote regions and ease pressure on eastern China’s densely populated areas. Lower energy costs in Xinjiang also attract silicon producers. The refined silicon is then shipped worldwide to solar panel manufacturers.
For Zonnefabriek, it is now important to determine whether the solar panels we offer contain purified silicon from Xinjiang and, if so, whether forced labor was used in the production of that silicon. How can we find out?
The solar panels that Zonnefabriek currently sells come from three companies: primarily SunPower (now known as Maxeon), a formerly American, now Singaporean manufacturer. Additionally, we sell panels from Hanwha Q-cells (German/South Korean), and for large projects, we often use panels from Trina Solar (Chinese). We will examine each company separately.
For our larger projects we use solar panels from Trina Solar: not the absolute top of the range, but solid panels at an attractive price. Trina Solar is a gigantic Chinese company, with factories in Thailand and Vietnam, and also within China itself in Suqian and Yancheng (in the province of Jiangsu) and Yiwu (in the province of Zhejiang), all on the east side of China and therefore far removed from Xinjiang. It is one of the largest solar panel companies in the world, together with other Chinese companies such as Jinko Solar, JA Solar and Longi.
It is known that many of the solar cells used in Trina Solar panels come from one of the other giants, namely Longi. Longi gets much of the required silicon from China itself, and therefore probably also from Xinjiang. There is therefore a good chance that at least some of the Trina solar panels that Zonnefabriek sells could have something to do with forced labor.
Q-cells, the German subsidiary of the South Korean conglomerate Hanwha, is the manufacturer of our second best-selling type of panel. The Q-cell solar panels are, as stated in the datasheet, "engineered in Germany," but they have not been assembled in Germany for a long time. The factories are located in South Korea, the U.S., Malaysia, and also in China, specifically on the eastern coast in Jiangsu province.
According to the Korea Herald, Q-cells has not yet taken a position regarding the situation concerning forced labor in Xinjiang but is "waiting for the recommendations of the SEIA." The SEIA is the Solar Energy Industry Association in the U.S.
SunPower panels are maufactured by Maxeon, a company from Singapore. Although SunPower used to be an American company, most of its solar panels were manufactured outside of the U.S. For the popular MAX3 solar panels (up to 400 Watt-peak), the following applies (see also the datasheet):
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Designed in the U.S. by SunPower Corporation
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Manufactured in the Philippines (solar cells)
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Assembled in Mexico (modules)
This means that steps 2 and 3 do not take place in China. But what about the silicon that is processed into solar cells in the Philippines—could it still originate from Xinjiang? SunPower (Maxeon) states the following on this matter:
*"Maxeon, as far as we are aware, has no direct exposure to risks related to allegations of forced labor. We are confident that Maxeon complies with all applicable laws.
None of our direct suppliers (nor those supplying them for our products, as far as we can determine) are based in or primarily operating in a location that has been the subject of recent forced labor allegations (i.e., Xinjiang, red.). Maxeon requires new suppliers of wafers or polysilicon to provide full traceability regarding the origin of their materials."*
In other words, as far as they can oversee, SunPower panels do not contain materials sourced from Xinjiang. They do leave some room for uncertainty, but it is clear that SunPower puts in the most effort among our three suppliers.
Notably, Trina, Q-cells, and SunPower are all co-signatories of an SEIA declaration opposing the use of forced labor.
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Trina Solar
For our larger projects we use solar panels from Trina Solar: not the absolute top of the range, but solid panels at an attractive price. Trina Solar is a gigantic Chinese company, with factories in Thailand and Vietnam, and also within China itself in Suqian and Yancheng (in the province of Jiangsu) and Yiwu (in the province of Zhejiang), all on the east side of China and therefore far removed from Xinjiang. It is one of the largest solar panel companies in the world, together with other Chinese companies such as Jinko Solar, JA Solar and Longi.
It is known that many of the solar cells used in Trina Solar panels come from one of the other giants, namely Longi. Longi gets much of the required silicon from China itself, and therefore probably also from Xinjiang. There is therefore a good chance that at least some of the Trina solar panels that Zonnefabriek sells could have something to do with forced labor.
-
Q-cells
Q-cells, the German subsidiary of the South Korean conglomerate Hanwha, is the manufacturer of our second best-selling type of panel. The Q-cell solar panels are, as stated in the datasheet, "engineered in Germany," but they have not been assembled in Germany for a long time. The factories are located in South Korea, the U.S., Malaysia, and also in China, specifically on the eastern coast in Jiangsu province.
According to the Korea Herald, Q-cells has not yet taken a position regarding the situation concerning forced labor in Xinjiang but is "waiting for the recommendations of the SEIA." The SEIA is the Solar Energy Industry Association in the U.S.
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SunPower
SunPower panels are maufactured by Maxeon, a company from Singapore. Although SunPower used to be an American company, most of its solar panels were manufactured outside of the U.S. For the popular MAX3 solar panels (up to 400 Watt-peak), the following applies (see also the datasheet):
-
Designed in the U.S. by SunPower Corporation
-
Manufactured in the Philippines (solar cells)
-
Assembled in Mexico (modules)
This means that steps 2 and 3 do not take place in China. But what about the silicon that is processed into solar cells in the Philippines—could it still originate from Xinjiang? SunPower (Maxeon) states the following on this matter:
*"Maxeon, as far as we are aware, has no direct exposure to risks related to allegations of forced labor. We are confident that Maxeon complies with all applicable laws.
None of our direct suppliers (nor those supplying them for our products, as far as we can determine) are based in or primarily operating in a location that has been the subject of recent forced labor allegations (i.e., Xinjiang, red.). Maxeon requires new suppliers of wafers or polysilicon to provide full traceability regarding the origin of their materials."*
In other words, as far as they can oversee, SunPower panels do not contain materials sourced from Xinjiang. They do leave some room for uncertainty, but it is clear that SunPower puts in the most effort among our three suppliers.
Notably, Trina, Q-cells, and SunPower are all co-signatories of an SEIA declaration opposing the use of forced labor.
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What Does the Industry Say?
Despite industry-wide opposition to forced labor, tracking the origin of silicon in solar panels is difficult. According to Holland Solar, the Dutch solar industry association in a press release:
"It is difficult to determine where the silicon in a product originates. The production process is the same worldwide, and end products do not reveal the source of their raw materials. Silicon is sold globally, making the supply chain difficult to trace."
The Dutch House of Representatives is also investigating the issue, particularly regarding subsidies for solar projects. Lawmakers do not want Dutch subsidies indirectly supporting companies that engage in forced labor.
What Is Zonnefabriek Doing?
Although Zonnefabriek is a small player compared to major solar manufacturers, we want to raise our voice. We have reached out to our suppliers with the following questions:
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Can you provide a protocol for tracing the materials in your products? If not, why?
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How can you guarantee that your products comply with International Labour Organization (ILO) standards against forced labor?
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If you cannot guarantee this, how do you push your suppliers to ensure ethical labor practices?
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If your suppliers make commitments against forced labor, how do you verify their compliance?
We hope that other companies will also make their voices heard, so that there is more pressure on the entire sector, and that manufacturers will do more to eradicate forced labor.
Final word
The final word on this matter has clearly not yet been said. We are monitoring it and are also trying to put pressure on our suppliers in our own modest way, to encourage them to do everything they can to ensure that everyone involved, even at the very beginning of the production chain, is treated fairly and ethically.
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