LONGi President Li Zhenguo attends 2023 APEC CEO Summit

On November 15, 2023, the APEC CEO Summit USA 2023 was held in San Francisco, United States. Li Zhenguo, founder and president of LONGi Green Energy Technology Co., Ltd. (LONGi), attended the summit and voiced LONGi's views on global energy equity and sustainable development.

Li Zhenguo, founder and president of LONGi, at the APEC CEO Summit USA 2023 [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Solar technology promotes global energy equity

During his speech at the summit, Li Zhenguo stated that photovoltaics (PV) have the advantages of safety, affordability, and sustainability. Through the efforts and technological advancements of the past decade, PV have become the most cost-effective source of electricity in the majority of countries and regions worldwide.

Li believes that the significant cost reduction in PV is closely linked to technological progress. A decade ago, the conversion efficiency of PV power generation was around 14-15%, but today, mainstream technologies can achieve 24-25%. Just two weeks ago, LONGi set a world record with a conversion efficiency of 33.9% for its silicon-perovskite tandem solar cell. LONGi also hopes to promote and apply high-efficiency PV technology in the future, with the aim of further reducing the cost of solar power generation and accelerating the achievement of energy equity.

"Green electricity" + "green hydrogen" driving global energy transition

Carbon neutrality has become a global consensus today. Over the past decade, through technological advancements and cost reductions, PV have become the most cost-effective source of electricity in the majority of countries and regions worldwide, serving as a supporting force for carbon neutrality and the energy transition. This has turned the energy transition for the next 30-40 years into a certainty.

Li Zhenguo stated that in addition to “green electricity,” they also need to vigorously develop “green hydrogen.” Since the establishment of LONGi’s hydrogen energy company in March 2021, LONGi has gradually strengthened its efforts in large-scale alkaline water electrolysis hydrogen production equipment, while actively promoting green electricity-based green hydrogen solutions to advance hydrogen energy technologies. Currently, LONGi is the world’s largest manufacturer of electrolyzers.

China’s PV industry has made significant contributions to global energy transition

Li Zhenguo introduced that currently, China’s PV manufacturing accounts for approximately 80% of the global market. Calculated based on a power consumption of 0.4 degrees per watt, it is forecasted that the annual module production capacity in 2023 will be 400 GW, consuming 160 billion kilowatt-hours, equivalent to the electricity generation of 20 nuclear power plants. This is a significant number, and Chinese-made PV products have made enormous contributions to the global energy transition and sustainable development.

Li Zhenguo, founder and president of LONGi, at the APEC CEO Summit USA 2023 [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

In 2018, LONGi proposed the concept of "Solar for Solar" at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP24), advocating the use of clean energy in manufacturing clean energy. In addition to creating low-cost, clean energy for the world and promoting energy equity, LONGi actively practices green and low-carbon production concepts and collaborates with suppliers to promote the development of green supply chains through concrete actions.